


Falling into Place

by Exorciststuck



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - No Sburb Session, F/F, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-27
Updated: 2016-07-19
Packaged: 2018-06-04 18:26:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 38,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6669490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Exorciststuck/pseuds/Exorciststuck
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity." - Mark Twain</p>
<p>When John's prom plans are compromised by Teen Romance, he finds himself at the centre of an elaborate plot to make sure that he gets what he wants- even if it means stepping on a few toes. It was supposed to be no strings attached, a big lead-up and a quick cut. These things are never that simple.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. John: Be Adaptable

**Author's Note:**

> I am almost certain Mark Twain said that.

Senior year, second semester. The clouds parted, the sun came out, and John felt life get just a little more hopeful each day he was closer to graduation- each day he was closer to finally starting to walk the path he'd chosen for himself.

He'd already picked his university and everything, which meant the only thing left for him to do was coast his way through to the commencement ceremony, hold that diploma while his Dad cried, and pose for a few hours with his siblings while hundreds of cliche photographs of them were taken. Later, they'd be sent to every single co-worker and shown to every single person who talked to his Dad for more than two minutes, and it'd probably be only a little bit embarrassing.

As for Prom, well. He had three very single siblings, and they had always been a cohesive unit, so he saw absolutely no reason to drop that tradition just because it was the big stupid romantic prom. It was still just a dance! Besides, he'd already made plans to get corsages and rent a limo as a group, and take all of his siblings on a platonic-familial prom date to remember. They'd have dinner together all dressed up, and take a billion selfies to send to everybody, and then they'd have fun dancing all night!

Apparently his siblings weren't nearly as in-tune with his thoughts as he'd previously predicted. Or, at least, they weren't anymore. Within the course of the month, John watched with horror as all three of his siblings, almost uncannily, all got dates to prom.

Jake had been first. It made sense, to be fair. As much as he was energetic and quirky and talked like a pretentious dickwad sometimes, John wasn't stupid- the guy was handsome. He had that rugged wilderness hippie charm to him, with none of the unkempt beard and man-bun style that turned people off. John hadn't been there to see the actual promposal, but somewhere along the line his charming brother had landed himself a date with the head of the robotics club, the aloof and untouchable Dirk Strider.

He sort of stopped being so aloof once John heard him making pony puns at his brother.

He definitely stopped being untouchable when he walked in on the two of them locked in a heavy makeout session on Jake's bedroom floor. 

But that was alright! John knew Jake was the type of guy who was kindhearted enough to balance two dates, and John would just get to spend more time with his lovely sisters- Jake's loss.

Then Jane met Dirk's sister, and John's forced happiness turned into worry gnawing at his stomach. Two in one week? He was half convinced they were some sort of family of sex demons, hellbent on ruining John's prom plans with their pretty faces and flirting and stealing away his family, one by one. After all, if he could admit his brother had a rugged charm, he could definitely admit that Roxy Lalonde was smoking. Jane must have had the same idea, presenting her with a cake that said, 'Be my player two?' less than a week after they'd started hanging out. 

So they were cute together, big fucking whoop! John had traditions, and plans, and they were all falling apart at his feet like a Jenga tower! Pull out one too many siblings, and the entire thing toppled over. His only reprieve was that Jade hadn't found a date yet. What were the chances that three out of four would snag a partner?

He could only groan to himself when Jane and Roxy introduced her to Rose Lalonde and her pretty books and pretty words, and then Jade had come home with black lipstick smudged on her neck and John knew that it was all hopeless. Luck was not on his side.

It's not even that getting a date was impossible, either. He'd just specifically chosen not to, partially because nobody had really captured his feelings, but mostly because he'd wanted to spend time with his family during grad, not with some pretty date he might never speak to again when he left the state for university. Apparently, it was just too damn much to ask his siblings to give him that much, all off vacationing on romance island while John sat all by his damn self.

During the course of the week, he'd gone from excited, to hopeful, to pitiful, and now he was just angry. He didn't need them! He had plenty of other friends, like Brendan from English, and Brandon from Home Ec, (or was it Brandon in English and Brendan in Home Ec?) and Chris from Biology and everyone who hung out with them, he really did have an extended friend circle! If his siblings were all going to be assholes and ignore him to make goo-goo eyes at each other in the hallways, then John was just going to have to see other people. 

He knew that Jane didn't really like the guys he sometimes hung out with either, so he hoped it'd make her feel pretty bad about pushing him into the arms of people she liked to call “classless hooligans hellbent on destroying civilization as they know it,” which was total bullshit, because he knew that her grad prank was miles more elaborate than their plan for silly string and eggs.

That's how he found himself sitting at a table with a bunch of those friends of his, gesticulating wildly in Chris' direction, his hands going absolutely everywhere. Someone tossed a pea at his face, but he was unfazed, talking right through it, “yeah, I mean, I get why they would want to take their dates? That makes sense, sure, you go with a date and take fancy photos and everything, but they've all been dating for barely a week and I've been their brother for almost eighteen years and I don't know why they'd just abandon me like that!” he groaned, sinking his face into his hands. Someone put another pea in his hair, and he knew he wouldn't find it until his shower that night, but he was too frustrated to actually care.

Brandon (Brendan?) punched him in the arm, and he rolled to look at him with a groan, only half interested in whatever bullshit plan he could come up with, “they all hooked up with the Strilonde family, didn't they?” John nodded halfheartedly, not really sure where he could be going with this. “Just hook up with the fourth one?”

Immediately, Chris chimes in, cruel amusement in his tone, “you mean that little freak that's always feeding the crows his lunch?” a few people laugh at that, and John's mood is so damn sour he perks up at it, sitting up straight. He knew there were four siblings, it was uncanny enough it'd been mentioned when his own family was brought up, but he'd never actually thought about who the fourth one was. Racking his brain for a name, Chris continued, “his name's Dave, isn't it? Man, who the fuck named those kids, Dave and Dirk?” Weakly, he laughed again. His Dad hadn't been much more creative when four kids popped into his arms within the span of a year.

“God, and don't even get me started on how he looks. Have you seen him? He's like a fucking ghost. An ugly, weird ghost too, he's not even scary,” John snorted, rolling his eyes. That was true enough, a ghost that just looked like a dumb teenager was pretty lame.

Another friend joins in with their own anecdote, gesturing for John to listen, “I bet if he was haunting my place I could exorcise him by telling him his selfies are ugly. God, he takes so many, what a tool.”

“Shit, seriously?” Chris responds, and then shakes his head, smiling, “what a fucking loser.”

John raised an eyebrow, looking towards his friends, “why would I want to date this Dave guy just because my family is dating his family? Especially if he's that bad, jeez. It's like you guys want to watch me suffer,” casting aside the fact that they really weren't making this Dave guy seem very enticing, the entire plan was kind of ridiculous and didn't solve any of John's problems. At least, not from what he was seeing.

“Just get him to go with you to prom, I dunno, make it some quadruple date thing. Then dump him the day after,” that would give him a chance to be with his siblings, that much was true. Maybe he could even get them away from their dates for a while. But it was definitely also something that if his siblings found out about, he'd be dead, even it was the Strilonde family's own fault, stealing his siblings away from right under his nose.

“This seems like a bad idea... You know, like, morally wrong...” he frowned, rubbing the back of his neck. It made the back of his head itch with guilt, knowing that despite his hesitation, there was some part of him that desperately wanted to do it- even if it was just to get even with the family that had hurt him with their selfish romance business. 

It must have been pretty obvious he wasn't convinced of his own moral standing, because a hand clapped him on the back, and John jumped, turning to glare at not-maybe-Brandon from English, “you practically said it yourself man, they wronged you.”

“Haha, I guess..?” John shrugged, his defence against his own words weak, “but if, you know, three of my siblings are dating them, can they really be that bad?”

He felt the hand on his back shake his shoulder, and Brandon from English leaned in closer, “it's cause they're hot. Besides, they're all real stuck up pricks,” well, John had to admit they were pretty intimidating, aside from the whole kissing his family thing, it wasn't a stretch to agree they were stuck up assholes. 

“Except Dave, that guy's fucked up ugly,” Chris laughs like that's the funniest thing he's said all lunch, but John just gave him a look before he went back to his contemplation. 

Eventually, he looked up, glancing at probably-Brandon, “it'd be easy, wouldn't it? If he's really that lonely all the time.”

Another round of laughter shakes the table, Brendan waving a fork in John's direction, “like hell it'll be easy, the guy's as flighty as a bird. Seen him hanging out with twenty different people, never for more than a week. Either the guy's even more intolerable than we thought, or he's got the attention span of a mosquito and he's gotta go find some other poor asshole to suck dry.”

“So he probably wouldn't even like me after prom then, right?” John perks up, figuring that it's not morally reprehensible to get dumped, instead of doing the dumping. He could even play up the broken heart, start some fission between his family and Dave's. Two birds one stone. 

“Yeah, but you'd have to get him to last that long first.”

Brandon-not-Brendan chimes back in, a smug look on his face, “man, if you can get that weirdo into you by prom I'd give you twenty bucks,” fuck. That's pretty tempting too.

Chris chimes in too, waving his wallet like a flag, “I'll give you fifty! That dude glares daggers at me every fucking day in Spanish, this is like, my revenge and shit.” 

John glanced around the table at his friends, and he couldn't help feeling pretty confident on his own end. He was a popular, attractive, high-achieving guy. Who wouldn't be lucky to get asked out to prom by him? Some guy like Dave Strider should have been bowing at his feet for the chance! And then he could have his prom with his family, and Dave Strider could fuck right back off to whatever rock he crawled out from while John went to university, satisfied with the memories he'd gained. His chest puffed out in pride, and he stuck out his hand, gesturing to everyone, “anybody else want in on this? Think I can get that Strider kid head over heels before Prom?” 

By the time the bell rang, John had two hundred dollars of his college fund and all of his pride on the line, and he wrote himself a note to go pick up a notebook from the dollar store on the way home- he suddenly had a lot of planning to do. He needed research, and he needed a hard hit, one good enough to knock Dave off his feet and keep him emotionally K.O'd long enough for prom to come and go. Surely, there was no way for this to go wrong.


	2. Dave: Be Belligerently Befriended

Dave didn't really care much for lunch time at school, if he was being bitterly honest. He got bored when he wasn't busy, and the big thing with school was that his siblings all had their own things to do. Rose was always writing, Roxy was always organizing some sort of event or running her club, and Dirk was always throwing himself into some new robotics project or something similar. 

Lately, as well, they'd been busying themselves with dating. Dave wasn't interested, and while he'd done his fair share of scoping out the family on social media- confirming that they weren't either dickbags or destined for failure after graduation- he really didn't fit in with them. Plus, it's not like he needed to spend time with his siblings at school, that was what they did all the time at home, he didn't mind them spending time with the people they'd chosen to romantically involve themselves with.

Although he wasn't taking too kindly to the suggestion that he should also look into involving himself with people, romantic or otherwise. Which was a steaming pile of horse shit that only his siblings could come up with, obviously. So Dave liked being alone, who fucking cared. He had friends online, and a bunch of successful blogs, and he was a well adjusted young guy with good grades and decent health. Why the hell did he have to satisfy their arbitrary guidelines for emotional and spiritual well being? It's not like they gave a shit the week before, when he was taking photographs of all the hub caps in cars at the school and cataloguing the make of the cars they belonged to. They just cared because all of a sudden they were all hiding hickeys behind bandanas and turtlenecks and heavy duty concealer, and Dave knew they pitied him for not being as popular as they were. 

If only they could get it through their thick heads that he actually didn't give a shit. Problem was, he loved his family, as overbearing as they were, and as easy as it was to tell them to fuck off and flip them the bird, actually getting angry was an unheard of phenomenon. Even at their worst, Dave could never muster up anything more than a pillow at the face to any of them.

At the end of the day, he didn't think they'd do more than passively nag him to change his lifestyle. The surprise he felt then, when he felt someone crouch down beside where he was tossing bacon bits at the crows, as evident on his face. He let the guy introduce him with a sickeningly cheerful, “hi, my name's John Egbert,” like he was straight out of one of those shitty made for TV teen movies where the awkward and painfully average protagonist was harassed by an overly cheerful student council member or something. Before the guy could continue though, he was interrupting him, saving his sorry ass from another who knows how long of saccharine happiness bullshit spewing from his lips.

“You're Harley's brother, ain't ya?” Dave squinted from behind his aviators, a small frown spreading across his face. Was this his family's way of getting him to make friends? Sure, they all had the same taste in overenthusiastic dorks, but he really didn't think he had the energy to keep up.

“That's me! You probably know Jake and Jane too, right?” John still latches onto Dave's words like a calf latching onto the udder, sucking every inch of conversation out of them. It'd be funny, if Dave wasn't incredibly confused and unhappy with this development so far. “They're great, I love them, best family ever. Say, I heard you like apples, mind if I sit with you?” Dave peered into a plastic bag John was shoving into his face, opened to reveal one bottle of crisp fruity goodness and two McDonalds apple pies.

Fucker must've asked Roxy what Dave would like to eat. He sighed, taking the juice like it was payment for an unpleasant job. After all, it was way too much work to resist the call of his favourite food being offered up for free, “yeah, fine, you're sitting here anyway, might as well make yourself at home. God knows I will,” he moved from crouching into sitting on his ass, breaking the seal on the juice to take a long swig. “Thanks, I guess.”

The way John's entire face lights up, like Dave just told him he had a truck full of puppies coming in an hour, it makes his stomach twist in a way he can't quite explain. It's.. Uncomfortable. The guy has a bit of a penchant for pranks, after all- he'd have to have been stupid to not know about all the Crocker-Egbert pranks pulled over the years- and for a moment Dave wonders if, perhaps, he's the subject of a prank himself. Similarly to how he'd have to have been stupid to remain blissfully unaware of the biggest troublemakers in the school, he's similarly aware of his own less than desirable reputation. He just can't muster up the energy to give a shit when he's graduating in less than half a year, and the people who matter know he's cool. Like his blog followers. Yet, this was the brother to all three of his sibling's significant others, and he can't see any reason why even he would think a cruel prank at the expense of Dave's feelings would be a good idea. 

It must have been obvious he was deep in thought, fiddling with the plastic ring under the cap of the apple juice bottle until John nudges him. “What's got you so deep in thought dude?” It'd be easy to lie, but, somehow, Dave wants confirmation more than he wants comfort.

“Did Roxy put you up to this?”

Immediately, John stiffens, but then his eyebrows furrow and he shakes his head, “what, no. Why would you think that?”

“So it was Rose,” another shake of the head, the concerned expression on John's face growing. “Dirk?”

“Ugh, oh my god Dave! Can't a guy want to talk to another guy without it being because he was put up to it?” He rolls his eyes, and Dave almost wants to punch him, but he listens for once instead. “Look, maybe I was a little bit inspired by all the dating, but just a teeeeeeny tiny tiny tiny bit. I just wanted to talk to you, that's all. Is that such an issue?”

He wanted to say yes, but instead Dave just says, “oh,” and brings his knees to his chest. “Really?” He gets a dramatic groan for his question, and Dave puts his hands up in defence, “alright, alright, you aren't being paid or bribed or otherwise coerced into being here, I get it. Dunno why you picked now to approach me-”

“I told you, I was a little bit inspired by teen romance!”

“Alright, whatever, so I dunno what the hell else inspired you to approach me, but whatever. Point is, are you just trying to strike a conversation, or do you want something from me? 'Cause if you're buttering me up to ask for cheap prom photos, you're asking the wrong guy.”

John visibly reacts at the word prom, and Dave raised an eyebrow, unsure of what that meant. When he doesn't launch into a rant about how awful school dances and graduate events are, Dave figures it's nothing, “all I'm saying is, as nice as the apple juice is,” he takes this moment to nab one of the pies from the bag as well, not missing the way John smiles like he'd just talked a stray cat into eating from his hand, “I don't really see the point in making small talk with some dude when we could both be doing better things with our lives.”

“Like what? Throwing processed meat flakes at birds?” John's nose scrunches up with amusement at his own comment, and Dave shot him a glare, hitting him in the arm with the apple juice.

“Jesus Christ, fuck off! If i thought you were gonna come here and piss on my birds I would've poured the juice on your head.”

He makes a face, like he's thinking, and then John smiles coyly at him, “nothing's stopping you from doing it now.”

“I got attached to it, we're married now. That's what the hell is stopping me.”

“Alright, whatever floats your boat dude. Anyway, I'll leave you alone- if you hang out with me tomorrow?” His face is so damn hopeful that Dave can't help but be taken aback by it, before bouncing back, his heart in his throat. Was this guy serious?

“You'll agree to fuck off if I agree to let you unfuck off tomorrow? That's pretty fucking stupid, even for your standards.”

“That wasn't a no.”

“Maybe I feel bad enough for your sorry ass, grovelling at my feet for a chance to spend some time with me.”

“I mean, you can say no if you want, but it'd be more fun if you say yes,” Dave knows that much is debatable, but he lets him continue anyway, “and I'm pretty sure you won't hear the end of it from your family if you say no.”

The shit eating grin on his face makes you frown, turning to face him more fully, “that's blackmail. I can't believe I'm getting goddamn blackmailed into hanging out with some dude who's got more teeth and cake in him than personality.”

“Okay, buuuuuuut, aside from the fact that you're full of shit, I'm pretty sure you actually want to do it! You would've left already if you didn't. Besides, if you stop having fun it's not like you can't leave, you've got two feet and a cellphone and three really cool siblings,” John's not exactly wrong about any of that, and Dave has to admit that he's got a little soft spot for people who call his family cool, even if it's only in passing. He's a sucker for that whole 'familial loyalty' thing, he'll admit it.

John's also got this fucking pout on his face that Dave doesn't really have the emotional capacity to turn down, and he sighs, the sound long and drawn out. “ _Fiiiiiiiine._ But only because you look goddamn pathetic right now. Don't try for debate club, puppy dog pouts don't work on those shitheads.”

He glows like Dave just promised him a free car or something, and he's gotta admit the enthusiasm is flattering, although he can't at all see himself dating John. Sure, it'd be a big ego boost, but he's firmly convinced that tomorrow will be a one-hit wonder, and by Monday he can go back to his original plan of scanning the forest for animal bones. “So, where are you gonna take me, casanova? I sure as hell hope you aren't planning to just sit on the concrete some more. That's fun and all if you're a pathetic loser, but I'm gonna have a gravel imprint on my ass cheeks, even with jeans on.”

“No, no, I've got a plan! They're opening the amusement park up for the summer this weekend, we can go there,” he looks so damn smug about planning the idea ahead, like he knew Dave was going to say yes before he did. Fucker.

Just because he's bitter about the smug expression, he makes sure to make it hard, “I don't have the money for that, sorry dude.”

“Consider it my treat. It'll be a date, alright?” Fuck. Can't say no to free mini donuts and a ride on the vomit-mobile, now can he?

“Yeah, sure, fine, except it ain't a date, you slimy asshole, you've gotta buy me dinner first. It's a broquaintance-date.”

“Okay, fine, it's a broquaintance-date, whatever you say Dave! I'll see you tomorrow then, eleven a.m. sharp. Make sure to bring sunscreen for your pasty ass!”

“Go eat a dick Egbert!” He walks away wiggling his eyebrows, and once he's out of sight Dave groans, putting his head into his hands. What the fuck had he gotten himself into?

Well, whatever it was, he'd better make sure to prepare some film for the next day. He could get some pretty sick shots of the amusement park from inside of it, and if John's really as interested in him as he seems, then Dave knows he won't mind a detour from the rides and games to take some pictures.


	3. John: Be the Casanova

When John tells Jane that he has plans to take Dave Strider, her girlfriend's baby brother, on a date- she goes a little haywire. John had really just wanted to ask her what she thought Dave's fashion sense would be, maybe get a little bit of information from Roxy, but instead he's being packed a picnic basket with little sandwiches and cupcakes so he can actually feed Dave something other than the over priced garbage they serve at the amusement park.

At the moment, he was eating an apple, sitting on the table as Jane spread cream cheese meticulously onto the slices of bread she was preparing. He looked down at his fruit, and then back to her, swinging his legs a little, “you know, I was just going to buy him a corn dog and some mini donuts... Maybe a slushie if he wanted one?” 

She looks up at John with the most scandalized expression, waving the cream cheese coated butter knife in his direction, “no brother of mine is going is eating that overpriced garbage on my watch! Especially on a first date!”

“Okay, first of all, it's not a date. And second of all, you let Jade and Jake try to see how many Ikea hot dogs in a row they could eat before getting sick just last weekend!”

“It was easier to just let them,” she sighs, her long standing role as the suffering and mature sibling holding up, “and even if it's just a friendly outing, that doesn't mean you can be sloppy! Friendships are tender things, and you have to cultivate them carefully.”

He took another bite of the apple while she spoke, and then swallowed, starting to pick a piece of skin out of his teeth, “you've been listening to Jade talk about her garden too much. Anyway, if you're doing this because you think it's going to make Roxy think you're cute or something, you're too late. I mean, I don't know if you've noticed, but she is sort of your girlfriend,” he had to fight to keep the frustration out of his tone, the romantic air of the room palpable. 

Even Jane's cheeks had pinked at his words, a smile curling up the edges of her lips, “you're right, you're right. Still, no trip to the park is complete without a picnic- amusement or not.”

In the end, it was easier for John to just go along with what his sister wanted. He never got around to scoping out Dave's fashion sense, but he put on some jeans and a t-shirt, figuring that was simple enough for a relatively hot spring day. 

Besides, based on what he had written in his notebook so far, Dave didn't actually care about fashion as much as he cared about his image. At least, that's what Roxy had stressed to Jane, who had relayed the information to John after he'd asked. And, considering how weird and unattractive he was, John didn't really think he had much of an image anyway. Aside from that, he had a list of Dave's hobbies and interests written down, which he consulted often when he was planning their day out, and a list of his personality quirks, which only contained one item at the moment: gets bored of friends easily. 

While he was happy to take the food Jane had prepared, John drew the line at the picnic basket she'd put it into, instead placing the containers of food into his backpack, along with his wallet, a first aid kit, and a few other amusement park essentials. 

All packed up and ready to go, John made his way over to Dave's place and went to knock on the door. He stood there, fiddling nervously with his sleeves, while mentally going over his plan for the day. He was going to, somehow, definitely get Dave crushing on him- or at least unable to stop thinking about him. He'd buy him food, and stand close, and laugh at his stupid jokes and stare at him a little bit too long on the Ferris wheel, and maybe even hold his hand, and then he was going to leave Dave stunned and dazed with his wooing abilities. It was foolproof!

He smiled widely when the door opened, Dave standing there with a camera wrapped around his neck, a shoulder bag hung over one arm. Seeing John, he nodded, and John stepped aside to let him get outside. “Hey Dave! Ready to go have the best time of your life?”

“Damn, didn't know we were going to the wax museum,” he went and climbed into the car, right before John could open the door, and John huffed, going to climb into the front seat. Whatever, the guy was self sufficient, that was respectable. He watched Dave buckle up and immediately begin fiddling with his camera, pulling the car out of the driveway.

“We don't need hyper realistic wax sculptures of Elvis Presley to have fun Dave! We'll just have to go on all the rides. _All_ of them.”

Dave gasped, and out of the corner of John's eye he saw Dave turn to face him, “even the kiddy-go-round?”

“Especially the kiddy-go-round Dave, duh. What do you take me for, a monster?”

He shrugs, pulling out his phone, “nah, just maybe a guy too caught up in being mature to live a little. You know, keeping a list of shit an adult is supposed to do. Gotta drink a cup of black coffee every morning, iron the silk tie, check the credit card bills, eat raisin bran, and head out at six am sharp to drive through the rat race downtown to the shitty downtown office. Get twelve dollars an hour, basic benefits, and maybe a Christmas bonus if you're damn lucky. And while you're at it, you ain't allowed to eat chicken nuggets, soft serve chocolate ice cream- only vanilla- or ride the kiddy-go-round,” John had no idea where he'd put his phone, but Dave started using his arms, waving them so much as he spoke that he almost hit John in the face a few times. Sure, it wasn't actually that big, but the car was small and he had lanky limbs!

Eventually, John starts laughing, although he's really only half paying attention, a little busy with the road, “yeah, sure, alright Dave! I promise I won't be a boring mature adult, just for you. Besides, my Dad already works an office job, and he's already complaining about how boring it is! Thanks, but no thanks.”

He hums his understanding, giving a little nod, “yeah, I get it. What're you gonna do after high school anyway?”

“I'm going out of state. I got a pretty good scholarship to the University of California for Computer Science. I'm thinking I can get a decent IT job and freelance web design? I dunno, but I used to suck at it, and then I practised enough that I'm pretty decent, and there are a lot of jobs in it, so I figured, why not? But what about you?”

John stopped at a red light, and took the opportunity to turn and see Dave frowning, giving an insecure little shrug, “dunno yet. Got into the University of Seattle, figured I could start there, pick something to focus on later.”

“Roxy was telling me you're pretty good at photography, why not do that?”

“Because I like it, and you never like your job, 'cause it makes you get outta bed and do shit you wouldn't normally do so you don't starve to death.” They both frowned, and then Dave sighed, “whatever, it's not a big deal, I can go work the shitty office job if I've gotta.”

“You'll find something you like, I'm sure.” Dave shrugged, turning to John's stereo, “maybe. Hope so. Hey, you got an aux cord I can borrow?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, in the glove compartment,” John was glad for the change of topic, he didn't want his attempt to romance Dave to turn into a bad memory about lack of future opportunities. Letting him pick the music would probably cheer him up, even if he'd immediately picked some maybe dance song that John had never heard.

The rest of the ride, John let Dave pick the music, and the two of them drove without talking. At first, John had felt awkward, but by the end of the ride he was relaxed again, and with the way Dave had untensed and spread out on his seat, he hoped the feeling was mutual. 

This time, he flew out of the drivers seat once the car was stopped, managing to get around to Dave's side and open the door for him, complete with a little bow. Dave raised an eyebrow, and stepped out of the car, “glad I'm getting the princess treatment.”

“Shut up dude, I'm just being polite! Just two dudes being chivalrous. Anyway, I've got lunch in the car, so when you're hungry we can just head back here,” he made sure he had his phone, keys, and wallet, and then he was heading for the entrance. He noticed Dave lagging behind a little, taking photographs of people screaming as they went through the loop on the roller coaster, so he slowed and walked with him. 

“We should go on the roller coaster first,” Dave nodded absentmindedly, letting his camera go so it could dangle around his neck. John flashed a smile at him, and at the gate to the park he forked over the cash for both of them, leading Dave through the gate. Once inside, he gestured to the roller coaster again, and began to speed up.

Despite having less in the leg department than John, Dave kept up really well, and he didn't look phased by their speed walking at all, his strides long, but also faster than John's, allowing him to keep pace. Quick enough, they were in the line for the main attraction of the park, it's long and loopy thrill coaster. John leaned on a wooden pole, smiling at Dave. “So, you come here often?”

“Only when handsome younger men buy my way in,” his deadpan made John laugh, although he was a bit stunned. 

“Who told you my birthday was after yours?”

“Who told you my birthday was before yours?” 

John rolled his eyes, stepping forwards in line. “Rose told me you're quadruplets, and I know her birthday is in December, so yours must be too. Now spill why you know mine is later.”

“In case you didn't notice, Roxy is sorta dating Jane, and she spilled the beans on the whole fake quadruplets thing.” John, who had previously been grinning, ended up wincing and rubbing the side of his arm. Right, she would have been told about that one. He should have known that.

“Did you, uh.. Get any details?” Dave shook his head, and he must have noticed the discomfort in John's face, because he backed off. John took a deep breath, and then forced a smile, “ask me later, alright?” Dave nodded hesitantly, and John's smile lost the uncomfortable edge, his mind at ease.

“Anyway, you aren't scared of roller coasters, right? Or heights? I don't want you to poop your pants on this ride. Or barf.”

“Or piss,” Dave replied helpfully, taking the next step into the line, “hell, maybe all of them at once, wouldn't that be a fetishist's dream. Especially if those seats have hanging legs, y'know? Like yeah, they're contained, but you see those swings over there,” he gestures and John turned, following his finger to the high open seated swings.

“Yeah, I see them.”

“If you piss yourself in the roller coaster car, it's just gonna soak you and the sorry asshole beside you, then they're gonna get real mad and punch you, and what the hell's the point in that? If you piss in those things,” he gestured at the swings again, almost urgently, “you piss yourself in one of those bad boys, whip your junk out and really go at it like a kid claiming the snow with his name, you can get a high velocity golden shower going for the whole family to enjoy.”

John scrunched his nose up in disgust, before laughing, “ew, Dave, gross!”

“You've gotta admit you're curious now though.”

“Uh, no? Come on, what if I hit a security officer or something. I'm too young to go to amusement park jail.”

“You're a good fifty feet in the air, they'd have to be willing to stare into the eyes of the torrent of piss coming out your dick to catch you. Think any security officer is willing to do that? They're only making a bit over minimum wage, they don't give a shit. Besides, amusement park jail is only a step up from public pool jail, you can break out easy.”

“You talk like you've done both,” John frowned when he saw a security officer walk by right then, grabbing Dave's arm to pull him forwards in line, “well, if anyone does it I'm pretty sure you're first on the hit list, you sound pretty into the idea.”

Dave glanced up at John, a hint of a smile quirking up lips that had somehow stayed completely deadpan during his entire speech, “what can I say, I'm a bad boy.” John snorted, and then finally, they were guided into one of the carts together, both of them quickly tucking their eyewear into a little pouch at the front of the seat.

John turned to Dave once the attendant had checked they were locked in, “if you pee in here, I'm going to kill you and mail your big toe to... To... To someone important you look up to!”

He briefly heard a gasp of, “Obama?!” before their cart was rolling, and John gripped tight, turning to smile at Dave.

The ride itself was exhilarating, and John howled with laughter the entire way, while Dave screamed. It was a quirk of his, he figured, that rather than screaming, he just laughed maniacally the entire way. 

Eventually the ride ended, and both of them stepped off, John smiling wide while they both put their glasses back on and headed out to go see their ride picture. 

Immediately, John squinted at the photograph, and then at Dave, “why are your eyes squeezed shut? Were you scared?”

“Albinism,” Dave replied, fiddling with his camera until he could take a photo of the photograph on the televisions. John snorted, shaking his head.

“Okay, first of all, did you just pirate that photo?”

“No, shut up, it's atmospheric.”

“Yeah, alright, whatever douchebag. Second, you seriously have to squeeze your eyes closed on all the rides?”

“All the ones that you'd take your glasses off for, yeah.”

John frowned, touching his arm, “damn, that sucks, sorry dude.” He slowly moved his hand lower, and then gripped Dave's in his own, trying to look as nonchalant as possible.

Dave responded by shrugging, pulling his arm away to brush a strand of hair out of his face, “whatever, it's not like you can see anything but blurs with how fast the damn ride goes. So what's next?”

John forced down his disappointment that Dave had dropped his hand, busying himself with the task of amusing them both. “Uh...” he looked around, and then spotted the Ferris wheel, expression lighting up. Ferris wheels were romantic! “How about the Ferris wheel?”

“Sure, cool,” Dave started off towards the ride, and John followed, standing so close their shoulders brushed. Dave pushed right back, and the two of them made their way to the shorter line for the ride. Mentally, John prayed that it would lock while they were at the top, and they'd have a view to enjoy together.

Instead, all his hopes shattered. Reaching the front of the line, the two of them were not in fact led into the enclosed and comfortable private car he was hoping for, but rather a chair- much like the ones Dave had suggested peeing off of- the very type that made John's stomach curl with queasy discomfort.

He knew if he gave up though, he'd never hear the end of it, so John swallowed his fear and let them go up. He let Dave swing his feet and swing them, despite the fear lurching in his gut, and he let Dave have his fun. Yet, when the reached the ground, he all but ran out, regretting both that he'd gone onto the ride, and that he'd missed his chance to woo Dave by cuddling him at the top of a broken Ferris wheel loop.

Dave patted his shoulder comfortingly while John caught his breath, and then softly spoke to him, “we should go get some lunch, all that piss talk made me real thirsty.” It made John laugh, and he felt safe enough to stand up straight, taking Dave's hand confidently once more.

This time, Dave held it all the way to the car, although considering the way he kept turning to look at John with a furrow in his brow, John figured it was a pity thing. Still, a hand hold was a hand hold, and it was pretty grounding, all things considered. 

While John got their lunch from the trunk, he handed Dave a blanket to carry, and they headed back inside, looking for a place to eat. Eventually, Dave grinned, grabbing John's arm to lead him to a grassy slope. Once they'd put the blanket down, John realized why. From where they were, the Ferris wheel was practically right above them, providing both shade, and from the way Dave was fiddling with his camera, probably a good photo op as well.

“Hey Dave, you're not allergic to anything, right?” He was just pulling out a container of mixed berries when he heard the camera click, looking up to see the lens pointed at him. A bit shocked, he blinked a few times, and then offered the fruit, which Dave took greatfully. “Taking photos of me, huh? I am basically a model you know.”

“Don't flatter yourself. You just looked...”

“Good? Fantastic? Gorgeous?”

“Happy.”

“Oh.” John blinked, and then relaxed, his lazy smile returning, “I guess I am pretty happy! Even if your swinging scared me shitless.” Dave laughed sheepishly, and John continued, “it wasn't funny! Well, actually, okay, it sort of was, like that one scene in Shrek where he keeps shaking the bridge, right? But aside from that, I'm having fun with you.”

John leaned in to rest his hand over Dave's, and this time, with no pity, Dave let him, a smile playing on his own lips, “I guess I'm having a not shitty time myself. Thanks, Egbert, for teaching me the joys of turning a dude white as a sheet.”

“You mean as white as you,” John smiled, but then his eyes went wide, “shit, Dave, you put sunscreen on, right?”

“Uh...” Reaching for his bag, John was fully prepared to get out the sunscreen and bathe the other in it, but then Dave said, “yeah, shit- Roxy did it for me before I left, 'cause she made a comment about how damn skinny I am.”

Breathing a sigh of relief, John nodded, “you are pretty damn skinny. Here.” He passed Dave a cupcake, which Dave took eagerly, moaning his approval at the flavour. 

“Holy shit?” His eyes were wide, and he took another bite, the pleasure of eating Jane's fantastic cooking visible on his face.

“They're good, right?” He nodded, already reaching for another. John pushed the container closer, taking a sandwich for himself, “Jane's awesome.”

“Roxy's so fucking lucky,” his mouth was full, and Dave's words were muffled, making John laugh. 

“Excuse you, I can bake too!”

John felt eyes on him for a moment, and then Dave swallowed and shrugged, “yeah, but you didn't.” 

“Fine, next time I'll bake for you!”

“I'm looking forward to it, casanova,” he shoots a teasing glance at John, but John is distracted by his word choice. Was it obvious he was flirting? Probably, in retrospect. But if Dave didn't mind, then whatever. 

In fact, it was so whatever he moved closer to Dave, pressing a strawberry to his lips. “Say ahh!” He frowned, lips pursed, and John frowned right back, “Dave, come on, it's fruit. It's good for you.”

A moment later, Dave bit off the fruit, leaving the leafy part John had been holding. Then he grabbed the container, eating another one himself, “I can feed myself.”

“Romance is dead and you killed it, Dave.”

Dave snorted, lightly smushing a blueberry against John's lips, “good thing we're not on a date then, Egbert. I'm but a fair virgin maid, and feeding me on a date would be a goddamn inexcusable sin, I'll have you know.”

After that, he stood up and moved a few feet away, and John was about to start planning ways to fix a ruined date, but Dave aimed the camera at him and took a photograph of his face, dumbfounded as he stared right at the camera. Then another picture clicked, and John frantically posed himself dramatically on his side, holding a stem of grapes above his lips. He heard laughter coming from Dave, and another few clicks, coming closer and closer.

Before John knew it, Dave was right up in his face taking photos, and John was laughing, sticking his hand out to block the photographs while Dave dodged around him, getting closeups of his teeth and nose hairs and the way he was helplessly laughing, like the camera was tickling him wherever it shot. Dave was laughing as well, revelling in the fact that John was such a good sport about the camera, not shoving or yelling at him like some people would.

Eventually, Dave just flopped down on his back beside John, who moved to lie with him. Their view of the clouds was sort of obstructed by the Ferris wheel above them, but it was good, and John sighed. He heard one final click, and he snorted, nudging Dave with his shoulder, only for Dave to nudge back and stay close, aiming his camera at the view above them. 

It was hot enough out that the cool breeze hitting them was comfortable, and there was no chill as they laid there together, staring at the clouds rolling past them, few and far between, but fluffy and full of imagery.

“That one's the KFC guy, Colonel something or whatever,” John muttered, pointing at a fluffy cloud with what was undeniably a fluffy little beard. Dave snapped a photograph.

A moment later, Dave pointed as well, “that's a crow eating a slice of pizza.”

“Oh shit, you're right! I can see it!”

They went on like that for a good twenty minutes, until John's foot was asleep and Dave had a cramp in his arm from aiming his camera at the sky so long. They both stood and stretched and collected up all their stuff, taking it back to the car. When they walked back into the park for the third time, they did so with John gripping Dave's hand, the two of them wandering around to methodologically go on each ride.

John harassed Dave endlessly on the bumper cars, and although Dave was a fierce opponent, he definitely got the brunt of the bumps from John ramming into him, sending him jerking against the side of his car. It was a fiercely competitive thing, and none of the children bumping with them stood a chance.

While John bought Dave a bag of mini donuts, Dave got his ass kicked at two different carnival games, and John's attempt to win a game of ring toss for him was no more successful. Rather than waste more money getting their asses kicked, John let Dave drag him away. “That shit is rigged, dude. It's so fucking rigged, they make it impossible on purpose, it's like legal gambling for children.”

“Mmhmm, that's nice dude,” John popped a donut into his own mouth, and then offered one to Dave, who took it thankfully, swallowing before he continued.

“I'm telling you, that shit should be illegal. Just give the damn kid the happy dolphin.”

“And by kid, you mean you, right?” 

“Damn fucking right.” John snorted, and smushed a donut against Dave's lips, only for Dave to open his mouth and take it from him, grinning up at John. A dare then. John squinted at him, and then pressed another donut to Dave's lips right as Dave grabbed one and smacked it into the corner of his mouth, just barely hitting the mark.

Both of them had stopped walking, and John's shoulders shook with closed mouth laughter as Dave slowly dragged the sugary treat across his lips to the middle, where John slowly took the food from him, making eye contact the entire way. 

For a moment, they stared at each other, but then Dave started raising his camera and John pulled away, both of them bursting into laughter. After that, they made a game out of smacking each other in the face with the donuts as they walked, dragging their way to the prize, until John felt disgustingly sticky and got a paper towel for them both.

Stomachs full of both good food from his sister and carnival goodness, the two of them went back to rides. They tried the octopus, smiling at each other from their two separate cars, and John held Dave's hand tight during the Gate to Hell, where they were held upside down, Dave's eyes squeezed shut and John's helplessly wide as he stared at the blurry distance between him and death. 

They skipped the swings, if only because John didn't want to tempt Dave to reenact his piss fantasies. Aside from that, they went through each ride, talking animatedly about the ups and the downs as they walked through the park, hands clammy and cheeks flushed from the sun.

Finally, as promised, to end their day, they took the kiddy-go-round three times in a row, howling with laughter as the two of them spun around, Dave laughing at the bemused expressions on parents, occasionally taking awful blurry photographs of John's own maniacal ride laughter. 

Dave was smiling at him by the time they'd run out of events, honest to god smiling big and wide right at John, the two of them holding sweaty hands firmly as they walked, and John was euphoric. Before this day they were just two guys that happened to be the siblings of people who were dating, but now they were undeniably friends, and if John had played his cards right, the seed of romance was planted in Dave's mind, ready to bloom. 

While he was undeniably the mastermind behind his own plot, he still realized that he owed Jane so much, and as they were heading for the exit he was suddenly struck with an idea. He squeezed Dave's hand, and then turned, pulling him the other way, “wait, wait, I have to get something for my sister!”

He took Dave into the gift shop, and while he wandered off to go fuck around with the bin of novelty tumbled rocks, John made his way to the bulk candy and grabbed one of the bags. He stared at the different flavours of jelly beans, row upon row of sugary colours, and then after a moment he caught sight of the cotton candy ones. How couldn't he? They were bright pink and he knew from experience they'd be disgustingly sweet. Perfect for Jane. He filled the bag as full as he could, tying it off.

Five minutes later he was ten minutes poorer and one bag of jelly beans richer, and Dave had wormed his way into buying a shiny red rock. Normally, John would've said no if a friend tried to do something like that, but at this rate he was positive he was going to be two hundred dollars rich. He could afford to get a thank you gift for his sister, and if buying Dave stuff was the way to his heart, then so be it. 

Their ride home was amicable, skipping the aux cord in favour of jamming their way through top 40 hits, singing off key and off beat all the way to Dave's house. John made a big show of walking him to the door, discussing what parts to share with their siblings, and then they stopped at the door.

“Thanks for taking me,” Dave said, the mood sobering up. 

John smiled at him, reaching forwards to give his hand one last grip, “thanks for letting me. I'll see you on Monday, alright? Have a good weekend!”

Dave's expression softened, and he smiled, nodding at John before he turned to walk into the door. John waited until it'd closed on him, and then he turned, heading back to his car with a smile still lingering on his face. He'd had a fun time as well, and if the entire bet was this enjoyable, he wouldn't mind at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [More art by the lovely Harveychan!](http://harveychan.tumblr.com/post/144183506184/art-for-chapter-3-of-falling-into-place-please)


	4. Dave: Encourage Bad Behaviour

On Monday, Dave didn't immediately search out John to eat with him. Rather, he went about his normal day, convinced that if John had enjoyed himself as much as he'd seemed to, then he'd come to Dave. Plus, if Dave was being brutally honest, the guys John hung out with were... Unnerving, to say the least.

He was sure it was nothing but paranoia, the result of an overactive imagination mingling with underlying anxiety that came with being a social outcast- however self-imposed that outcasting was- but that didn't change the fact that it was _there_ , itching at the back of his mind, and whenever John's friends walked by they were laughing. Which, alright, fair enough, except that it felt like they were laughing straight at him. 

They'd always laughed when they passed by him as well, which was both comforting, (they probably just liked laughing,) and mortifying, (was he really that amusing?) Still, it was just laughter. Except, when they walked by him, John talking in the middle of their circle as they came down the hall like a pod of whales, forcing everybody to move for them. They'd laughed, as always, but somehow it'd seemed crueler, like there was an edge to it, and Dave could have sworn that John wasn't laughing.

But they were teenage boys, and teenage boys found everything amusing in groups, and John had looked pretty into his story, so Dave forced himself to brush it off. They'd had a good time on Saturday, he wasn't going to ruin that with the overwhelming urge to push John away. And John's family was closely linked with his own, so it was a low risk situation letting himself be friends with John. If he stepped out of line, Dave had three quick and easy links to making sure John felt like absolute shit for it.

At lunch, Dave made a real effort to not approach John, just as he'd done before. Instead, he sat outside where they'd first met, eating a sandwich made with seedy healthy bread that Jake had recommended to Dirk. It tasted pretty good, and when the seeds fell off into his hands he tossed them at the crows, letting them fight over the tasty morsels. 

Whenever he heard the door to the school open, he perked up just a bit, listening to see if he'd be approached. Each time the person just kept walking, unseen by Dave, until suddenly he heard an excited, “hey Dave!” And then a hand was on his shoulder, giving a light squeeze. 

Turning to face John, Dave patted the spot beside him, “hey dude. Good day?”

John sat down beside him, shrugging, “yeah, I guess? As good as school can be, at least. Better now that I'm with you.” Dave turned to look at his sandwich at that, feeling warmth run up his neck. John was definitely quite the flirt, and it was pretty damn flattering. 

Idly, he reached for his camera bag, the itch to take a photograph of the moment tickling the back of his neck. He wanted to be subtle though, so he'd get a candid shot, but then John touched his arm and made him jump, turning to look at him, “something up, or was I just so damn irresistible you had to steal my heart? Y'know, I'm a hand holding novice Egbert, so if you're gonna keep doing this I'm going to have to ask you to _take responsibility._ ” He puffed his chest out, doing his best to look regal and serious.

All he got for his efforts was a weak chuckle, and John's hand dragging down his wrist to hold his hand. Dave had noticed he was quite touchy, on top of being flirty, and while he'd wanted to ask one of his siblings about it, he'd been scared of the teasing that might come with it. As a result, he kept John Egbert's touchy flirty tendencies to himself, holding his hand right back. John beamed at him, like reciprocating his affectionate touch was the same as giving him a thousand dollars or some shit.

“I was just wondering why you have your camera with you at school! That's all. Are you in the photo club?”

“Was,” Dave frowned, shrugging. He'd liked it for a while, but then there had been talks of projects and school involvement and suddenly it wasn't enough that he wanted to show up sometimes with photographs he'd taken in the woods to develop them, so it'd stopped being fun and started being a resume booster. He sighed, and then told John, “I'm in photography though.”

John gasped, like that was one: a genuinely surprising fact; two: a genuinely interesting fact; and three: something he conceivably cared about. Dave didn't think any of that was true, but he still nodded, playing along when John started to speak, “you know, that's pretty cool! I see a lot of students with cameras walking around the halls and outside during Home Ec, but I never see you, so I never would've known.”

He snorted, putting his sandwich back into his lunch container, and then pulling his camera bag into his lap, “that's because I don't hang around the boring ass school. Unless I'm doing a project that involves a metric fuckton of cars, I guess. Usually I'm in the woods though, over there,” he pointed towards the street and beyond it, where the trees grew high and green in the spring sun. 

“Wow, you must get some pretty awesome pictures. What do you photograph?”

At this moment, Dave realized he could easily take the easy way out. He could say the creek, or rocks, or the sky, or any number of gorgeous things that he'd occasionally snapped a photograph of. Instead, he thought of a photo he'd taken recently that he adored, scrambling to take his camera out of his bag as his mouth ran away from his rational brain, “dude, holy fuck, you wouldn't believe the photo I got last week, it was the coolest goddamn shit and I'm gonna edit it a bit for contrast and print that shit out- it's a fucking masterpiece, came out real nice too.”

Sure enough, there was the photo, one of a crow beside a smashed open snail shell, eating it's fill while the dead remains of the insect laid there. It was morbid, and disgusting, and right up Dave's goddamn alley, despite the fact that he knew it was all sorts of fucked up.

He looked expectantly at John, who looked from him to the photo a few times, seemingly trying to decipher the meaning behind Dave's enthusiasm, before he just smiled and squeezed Dave's hand again, “that's really fucking gross Dave.”

His words were edged in amusement, not malice, and he nudged Dave, smiling at the camera, “it's sorta cool too, you know. In a gross way. But it's a good picture, I think? I don't actually know anything about photography, but I think it looks good. Like the forest, all lighty.”

There was absolutely no knowledge or eloquence behind his words, but Dave felt flattered all the same, nodding down at the photo, “yeah, it did turn out real good. I'm proud of it.”

For a moment longer, Dave let John stare at the photograph, before the urge to put his camera safely away again overwhelmed him, and he turned it off, setting it back into it's bag, “so you've got Home Ec, hey? You making anything good? Damn, dude, you should give me some cookies.”

John snorted, rolling his eyes, “as if. We're just doing stupid nutrition worksheets today. Seriously, why do they even make us learn about how many vegetables we need to eat in a day if they're just going to make us bake cookies and crap like that all the time?” 

Giving him a gentle nudge, Dave grabbed his attention away before he could burst into another complaint about the downsides of his elective choices, gesturing to his bag, “come with me then.”

“You mean _skip_?” John gasped, and Dave nodded at him. “Dave, I can't just skip! I'm a good student! I have a reputation!”

“So you've never done it.”

“NO!” Dave frowned, raising an eyebrow. It seemed that, despite being friends with some objectively awful students, John was dedicated to his academic standing. 

“Come on Egbert, live a little. Your dream school ain't gonna care if you miss a day of Home Ec to go frolic free and wild in the woods. Besides, you ain't gonna do it next year, might as well do it while you've still got the chance.”

Dave didn't really know why he was inviting John along with him, honestly. His time in the woods was sort of his private time, and bringing someone along made it decidedly less private. Yet, some part of him had spoken up, and he couldn't exactly back out anymore now that he'd offered. Especially when John had a little furrow in his brows, obviously tempted by Dave's words.

Well, might as well go the full twenty miles, “we can stop and get something to drink on the way, my treat.”

John perked right up at that. He'd caught him, hook, line, and sinker, “you mean it?”

“Yeah, of course. You treated me real goddamn nice on Saturday, but I ain't gonna let you go around buying everything without getting something back out of it. What do you take me for, some spoiled princess?”

He quirked a brow, a smile that screamed trouble crossing his face, “does that make me your prince?”

Standing up, Dave tugged his bag over his shoulder, “I take it back, you can't come with me, you're a shitty prince.”

“What? Why?” He looked genuinely offended, standing with Dave, “come on dude, I'm charming as hell!”

“Jesus Egbert,” Dave reached over, pushing a hand onto his mouth, “shut the fuck up. Don't you know jack shit about charming princes? You ain't supposed to know you're charming or talk about being all princely and shit, it's vein and conceited, and you're my blank template of man meat for me to idolize.” He licked Dave's hand, and Dave made an undignified nose, rubbing the wet hand on his cheek, “god, you're shit at this.”

“Okay, fine! I'm not a prince. Happy now dude? Now can I come with you?” Shit, he knew how to do the puppy dog eyes. Dave was a real sucker for those, but he mustered up all his will power, pointedly looking at John's shoulder rather than his face as he replied.

“Aw, that's pretty cute. Grovel some more dude, s'good look for you. Try it on your knees too.” He'd nailed it right then, and he knew it by the way John faltered for a moment before he caught himself, stepping into Dave's personal space.

Shit, he really did step too, and Dave backed up a step. Even then, there was barely a foot between them, and John smiled down at him, eyes practically twinkling, “we've only been on one date and you're already getting me down on my knees Dave?”

He swallowed hard, still avoiding John's eyes, even as he felt warmth blossoming on his cheeks. Fuck John. Fuck his own pasty ass skin too, since he knew John would easily see his reactions, “don't you know ladies like me like to move it fast? Gotta get married rich young.”

“Am I rich, Dave?” His hand touched Dave's, and then grabbed it, entwining their fingers.

“Like a fresh bag of manure.”

Dave let out a shaky breath, and then he took a solid step back- although he kept a hold on John's hand. Still, they'd been a little close for comfort, and when he had that distance between them again he exhaled, letting the cool air soothe his blush away.

John, who'd looked playful and confident just a moment ago, looked visibly disappointed for a moment, before he smiled at Dave and squeezed his hand, “so, where should I meet you? Outside the art rooms?”

“God no. That's just asking for your sorry ass to get caught, you aren't exactly an unknown Egbert, they'll pick you out and wring you out. Thought you wanted that squeaky clean record.” Damn, the distress on his face was priceless, Dave couldn't help a smile at it. For a class clown, he sure did care about what adults thought of him. 

“I do! So where should I meet you?”

“Go stand at the entrance to the trail, got it?”

“How do I know you won't abandon me?”

“You know my entire family. Jesus, just go Egbert, before I come to my senses and go tell the Home Ec teacher their favourite little cooking prodigy is skipping.” John squinted, but then relented, giving Dave's hand one last squeeze, then dropping his hands and turning towards the street.

Not wanting to waste his time too much, Dave headed towards his classroom. If he was lucky, he'd be able to talk his way into leaving early to get a head start on the photo sessions. He was more than capable of doing everything that he learnt in the class already anyway, and he had no shame in admitting that. Why did he need to stay and learn about aperture when he could just go outside and take photos already? Especially when he was such a hands-on learner, and the feel of the camera in his hands was comforting. It was such a nice weight.

Thankfully, explaining that he had a game plan for the class was enough of an excuse that he was given his freedom, and Dave left the classroom, making his way over to where he'd instructed to John to go. At first, he didn't see him, but then he saw an inch of elbow peeking out from behind a bush, and he put on his best neutral expression as he stepped into the forest.

Immediately, John jumped out at him, but rather than jump backwards, Dave stood there, staring up at him. Obviously not expecting it, John almost toppled them both over, only barely managing to catch himself on the car rails at the start of the trail, with Dave using his arm to support himself. Then John tugged Dave upright completely, their chests flush. Dave felt John's chest rise, and he exhaled, frozen with shock. But, at the same time, his skin felt warm.

A moment later, John's hand touched his hip, and Dave stepped away, giving his camera a squeeze, “lets go take some photos, Eggs Benedict.”

“That's an awful name.”

“Damn right it is, now come on, Jesus Christ, we don't have all day,” he grabbed John's hand, tugging him deeper into the forest. It wasn't really a true hiking trail by any definition of the word, but Dave enjoyed the short little walking trail, with the creek trailing through it and the deep green ferns and moss covered tree bark. To him, it was a shady and cool little escape from the harsh glow of the street, a hidden paradise just a block away from the rest of the world.

He enjoyed his small forest.

John similarly seemed to be enjoying the little trail, “you know, I've walked by this place probably a billion times, and I've never gone in.”

“Like some shitty dive you don't think about, but it's got real cheap good food, yeah?” John nodded in agreement, squeezing Dave's hand.

“So I get a drink after this, right?”

“Yeah, sure, I'll buy you an iced coffee on the way back.” 

John pumped his fist into the air, accenting his words with a triumphant, “yes!” 

Dave rolled his eyes, and then dropped John's hand, gesturing for him to follow as he veered off the path into the forest, “don't trip,” he muttered, scanning the ground for anything of interest, “and tell me if you see something dead.”

For a while, both of them diligently searched the patch of forest they'd wandered into, moving aside leaves and sticks to try and find something cool. At one point, Dave found a large spider in a web, snapping a few photos of it, but aside from that he wasn't having much luck.

Eventually, John turned to him, smiling as he asked, “what about a mushroom?”

He groaned, walking over to the set of little white fungi John had found. Shrugging, he lifted his camera, “yeah, sure, why not.” He took the time to zoom and adjust his camera settings until they were just right, getting enough white balance that it looked good, and the mushrooms just slightly off centre, in perfect clarity with the forest around them a glowing green blur.

After, when he showed John the photo, he received a gasp. Dave smiled, glad for the praise, only for John to lean in even closer, going so far as to touch his digital baby.

“How do you use it,” he heard John say, still gently touching the black plastic casing on his camera. Dave glanced at his watch, and then nudged John, taking the strap off from around his neck.

“You actually want me to show you?” When he got firm nods as a response, he gestured to a grassy spot in the forest, walking to it, “don't see why I can't introduce you to the art of the camera. It's a damn piece of magic, this baby is. I love her.”

John's lips quirked up, “what's her name, _Cam_ eron?” He let out excited snorts of laughter, but Dave just stared right at him, forcing a serious frown onto his face.

“It's Jenny, jackass.”

“...Jenny, alright. Hi Jenny! I'm going to learn how to use you,” John turned from the camera to Dave, giving a pointed look, “if Dave ever shows me.”

“Ugh, fuck, _fine_. Way to rush me into it, I was going to give you a whole damn speech on how I met Jenny, and my first photograph, and that time I got a photo of some uptight middle aged business man mid-sneeze and he said he'd sue if I didn't delete it so I did but fucker didn't know about data recovery and now it's on my bedroom wall, and then I was gonna talk about historical photos like that one of the giant piece of shit sitting in the toil-” he was cut off by a hand over his mouth, and Dave's eyes went wide.

“Dave, oh my god, please shut up and show me!” Well, if he was going to be that way about it.

Relenting, Dave pushed John's hand off of his mouth, and he moved closer to him. Their legs sat straight out, and Dave laid his over John's as he showed him how the camera worked, gently explaining on and off and how to take a photo until John smacked his arm, before really getting into the meat of it.

To him, it was a good exercise also. Sometimes, he really lived through his camera, but much like his own body, if he wasn't constantly aware of the parts of it then he'd forget them- so automatic it was to use the piece of equipment. So, telling John about aperture and shutter speed and zoom and all the other finicky little parts of the camera was extremely useful for Dave, while not all particularly useful to John. Not that he seemed to mind listening, if the way his eyes were glued to Dave's face was any indication.  
The attention was pretty nice though, he had to admit. Normally, when he talked about the things he enjoyed, people got bored and ignored him, or straight up told him to stop rambling and shut up. Yet John, for whatever reason, seemed content to let him talk for ages. It was... Nice. He appreciated it. Enough to buy him a coffee.

Also enough to let him touch his camera, handing it over when John began to make grabbing gestures at it. “If you break her you buy her,” Dave muttered, but it was really an afterthought as John grabbed his camera and looked around through the view finder, and then aimed right at his face.

The click of the camera coming from a place that wasn't right by his head was startling, and Dave blinked at John, only to snort and smile at him, which only prompted John to take more photos, obviously, if the click click click of his camera was any indication. 

“You fucker, you're supposed to ask the lady if she wants her photo taken first.”

John peered out from behind the view finder, and Dave was dazzled by his bright blue eyes for a moment, fingers itching to take his camera back and capture an image of them. Yet, he knew if he reached John would move, so he committed the image to memory instead, locking it away in his heart.

Then John snapped another photo, and he jumped up, backing away, “you obnoxious fuck!”

“Oh come on Dave, you were taking photos of me all Saturday, I want some photos of you too!” Dave's breath caught in his throat, and he leaned on a tree, giving John the opportunity to take more photos that Dave was almost certain would be blurry and amateur, especially considering he kept talking, “I think you're handsome Dave, and I want a photo of you!”

Well, damn. Dave felt more traitorous heat rising to his cheeks, and he slumped to the ground less than ten feet from John, only for John to scoot closer and lift the camera up, lens facing them as he snapped a photo of them. John: smiling wide, pleased with himself. Dave: frowning, his cheeks flushed an unfortunately vibrant red.

He took his camera back after that, placing it into his bag, but the damage was done. His cheeks were irreversibly warm, and whenever he thought they might be cooling he thought again about what John had said. He was handsome, that was fine, he could process that.

But John wanted a photo of him.

It felt like he was in a daze, with John looking at his phone and panicking, something about how he wanted coffee and class would be over soon and he refused to miss two classes in one day. Dave let himself be pulled along, but it felt more like floating than anything.

Even in the coffee shop, handing John the money felt more like instinct than anything else, and it was only John's hand grounding him that kept him from floating away a confused, flustered mess.

When they returned to the school, John squeezed Dave's hand and smiled at him, the two of them standing there in the parking lot. Then the bell rang, and John left for his class with a hasty, “see you tomorrow Dave!” Leaving him there outside.

Only once John's figure was gone did he gently reach up, touching his warm cheeks with a strange sort of awe.


	5. John: Celebrate Adulthood

John was woken up in the morning by two party horns going off into his ears, and then two excited siblings lifting him into a dual hug, making him laugh and squirm as they laughed right back at him. “You're assholes!” He protested, pushing at their faces as Jake messed up his already ruined hair and Jade burst into an awful rendition of 'Happy Birthday'.

Then Jane came into the room holding a gift bag, their Dad behind her. John was set back down onto the bed, and he smiled at his twin sister, reaching for a similar gift bag from under his bed before he stood up to go hug her gently. “happy birthday Jane!”

She handed the bag off to their father, and while John heard the telltale sounds of their father peeking, he hugged Jane tightly right back, hearing her voice close and excited in his ear, “happy birthday to you too John!”

The two of them pulled away, smiling and laughing at each other. On his birthday, he always felt closest to Jane, the two of them sharing a similar sad story, but also a similar happy present, the two of them now both proud adults.

Rather than pull away, they opened their arms, making room for the rest of their family to join in. For a moment they all just hugged each other, bursting with love and happiness. “I love you,” John said to everyone at once, and soft murmurs of 'I love you too,' filled the room.

Of course, no hug could last forever, and eventually his Dad pulled away, straightening his fancy silk tie. “As much as I'd love to stay home with you all, you know how office hours are,” John groaned, and Jane sighed, but both of them smiled and nodded. That was just the reality of having a birthday on a Friday, and while they'd been lucky their birthdays conveniently fell on a day there was no class, their father couldn't simply abandon work. As a compromise, they'd agreed to flip friend and family festivities, spending time with their friends on Friday and their families on Saturday.

Contenting himself with one more quick hug, Dad left after that, waving goodbye. For a moment they were quiet, but then the sound of the car starting came in through John's open window, and all four of them snapped out of their silence.

“Well,” Jane said, a smile on her face, “I have a birthday date today that I have to get ready for! I'll be back tonight.”

John nodded, beginning to push his siblings towards the door, “I have birthday plans too, so get out so I can put clean boxers on.”

Leaning on the door frame, Jade grinned at him, a teasing expression on her face, “let me guess, you're going out with Dave?”

“Yes?” Her expression only grew more intense, and Jake feigned a gasp, forcing John to throw a sock at both of them, “shut your face up! He's nice, alright?”

“And you like him? I mean, you spend pretty much all your time with him,” Jade asked with a teasing tone, while Jane just smiled knowingly.

There was the urge to deny it, that part of him that remembered this was all a joke. Still, if he expressed a lack of interest, Jade might tell Rose to tell Dave to back off, and that was the last thing John wanted. Instead, he shrugged, fiddling with his fingers, “I mean.. Why wouldn't I? He's funny, and cute, and really warm.” 

Actually, John reminded himself, Dave was weird and ugly and had cold fingers, and John wasn't _really_ interested in him. He just got caught up in the moment sometimes, and it was natural to like holding someone's hand, and if he stared a little too long it was just because his brain didn't know what to make of Dave.

She looked pleased anyway, practically bouncing as she jumped back into the room to grip his hands, “John, I'm so happy for you! I felt sort of bad ditching you all the time to go on dates with Rose but if you're with Dave then we can go on double dates and you won't be lonely!” He nodded, but inside he was pretty damn pissed that Jade _knew_ she'd been ditching. 

All the more reason to make sure he got those double dates.

“Alright, I told you about my dumb crush, let me put pants on!” Sated, Jade finally left and let him be, pulling Jake with her to go get ready for whatever their plans were. 

He could hear Jake saying something about having forgotten about his 'blasted' date with Dirk or something, and Jane rolled her eyes, muttering to John, “Jake's got his work cut out for him, trying to get Dirk outside on a hike for more than an hour.” She smiled sympathetically, and briefly rubbed John's shoulder, before leaving as well. Watching them go, John frowned, and then sighed, picking up his phone to see if he had any messages from Dave about being on his way yet. When he saw one, he decided to pick up the pace, grabbing his trusty pair of favourite jeans to wear.

Jade was right about one thing, at least. John was spending a lot of time with Dave, and had been for the last two weeks. They'd gone on their date to the amusement park, and had their adventure in the forest, and after that they'd spent all their lunches together and properly traded numbers. Now, even when they were apart, they were texting each other, and John found a worrying number of his thoughts occupied by Dave.

But, at the same time, his plan was working fantastic. He'd been getting all sorts of hints from Jane that Dave had a bad case of the dreamy sighs, when they were together his touches lingered longer, and John had definitely had a few close calls where they'd stared deeply into each other's eyes. If he was lucky, then tonight would be the night he solidified things, and after that he only had to coast through and enjoy the rest of the semester with Dave, then he could spend time with his family at prom and dump Dave and he'd get his two hundred dollars and move away. Foolproof.

If he wanted his plan to work though, he actually had to get ready for his birthday not-date. With his pants firmly on his butt, John was free to grab at the notebook and peek into it, cross-referencing his plans for the day with Dave's interests. Not that he really needed to, somehow he'd managed to memorize them all. The quirk page had also begun to take up more space than he thought, but he didn't even need to consult that to know them all. He knew about how Dave would smile if a crow quirked it's head at him, and he knew that Dave liked to entwine fingers while they held hands, and he knew he preferred summer because he got cold easily, and he loved apples, was scared of large dogs, sneezed when he was spooked, had dimples on his cheeks and freckles on his stomach, and tons more. Still, there at the top, underlined and highlighted, was the very first quirk about Dave getting bored easily. He hated that it made his stomach feel weird for no good reason, and John sighed, closing the book to go brush his hair.

A good half hour later he heard the doorbell ring, and then he heard Jake calling him. Fuck, if he wasn't quick his birthday was going to end up being a painful hike through the woods. He grabbed his wallet and keys, rushing down the stairs to push past Jake- who was, predictably, singing the praises of the great outdoors to an enthused Dave- and capture his friend in a tight hug.

Jake seemed to realise the moment was private quick enough, and when John pulled away Dave was beaming at him, his pale hands resting on John's arms.

“Happy birthday, you fucking dick,” Dave was still smiling, and for one small moment John had the urge to lean in and kiss him. Which was dumb. Why would he kiss him now? That wasn't a bet winning kiss. 

Instead, he ruffled up Dave's hair, pulling away with a grin, “thanks! Adulthood is pretty okay so far, I can finally star in a porno with you.”

“Wow! Is that what you have planned for us?”

“Pfft, no, shut up. We're going to go fuck around downtown for a bit, get some lunch, throw stuff at seagulls, watch a movie. Then you and me are going to go grab some fast food and go to this dark field to stargaze! There's supposed to be a meteor shower tonight and everything. Say, you brought your camera, right?”

“Duh, what the fuck kind of monster do you think I am?” He gestures to the bag at his hip this time, and, admittedly, he looked a little starry-eyed. John must have made a good choice planning their date then.

“You brought a jacket too?” This time Dave frowned, and John sighed, ruffling his hair up again, “don't worry! I'll get one for you!” He ran upstairs, a bit of a thrill in his stomach, which was probably just because Dave wearing his clothes would surely make Dave want him. And he'd wash his jacket really well after, obviously.

Rushing back downstairs with the warmest one he owned, John tucked it over his arm and guided Dave outside, the two of them walking arm-in-arm, “we've got blankets in the back of the car, aaaaand I even borrowed Dad's tripod for you.”

“Jesus, you're a saint.” He shrugged, stepping into the driver's side of the car, starting it up.

“I'm just a dude Dave!”

“Jesus probably said the same thing.”

“Ugh, you're the worst, why are we friends?”

“Cause you can't resist me, obviously,” Dave leaned back, bringing his knees to his chest, and John groaned. He was right, sort of. At the very least, John couldn't avoid him if he wanted to win, and sure, if he was being honest, sometimes he had fun with Dave.

Thankfully, Dave took his words another way, and he reached over to rest his hand over John's on the gearshift, shooting him a smile, “don't worry, can't resist you much either. Hard to turn down a guy who introduces himself with free food.”

“Apple juice and apple pies...” John smiled a bit himself, relaxing. He was fine. Dave wanted to be with him today, and it was no use trying to justify his own thoughts to himself. If he wanted to have fun with Dave, then so be it. Might as well enjoy it, especially if Dave really did get tired of him quickly.

Dave nodded, staring right at John, the two of them falling into silence for a while. Eventually small talk came back up, and the rest of the ride was spent discussing their lives, talking about their classes and siblings and how much school was killing them as they got closer and closer to tasting true adulthood, not just the kind that was slapped on their chests on their birthdays.

Even if he hadn't been the one driving, John would've recognized the moment they entered Seattle by the way Dave sat up, familiarity and excitement settling in the marrow of his bones as John turned off the I-5 and into the city, heading down towards the water. 

While John began the search for parking, Dave looked around at the skyscrapers around them, fiddling with his camera bag, “so, when you say fucking around downtown, you mean walking around taking photos of shit, right?”

“I dunno... That isn't much of a birthday for _me_..” John snorted, “yeah, that's what I meant dude. I mean, I wanted to go to the arcade too, but I'm not the biggest fan of doing touristy stuff on a warm Friday afternoon.”

“You mean you _don't_ want to go on the Ferris wheel over there?” John's face paled, and Dave couldn't help laughing at him, to the point where John punched him in the arm, “shut up! Oh my god, you're such a gigantic asshole. I was trying to make a friend and it backfired, alright?”

“More like you were trying to woo me, you goddamn smarmy fuck,” John choked on a sound at that, and once the car was parked he turned to stare straight at Dave, who only shrugged in response. As if it was obvious that John was wooing him. Which, fair enough, John hadn't exactly been subtle- but Dave said it so nonchalantly, like it didn't matter. 

Yet, a moment later he held John's hand in his own, squeezing once before he, as always, entwined their fingers properly, “I never said it was a bad thing,” he added on quietly, and John was speechless, gaping at him. If this was how their entire day was going to go, he wasn't sure he'd survive, his heart was beating so damn hard.

When John didn't respond, Dave pulled away from him- obviously flustered. Startled out of his stunned state, John grabbed his hand again and pulled him back, forcing the eye contact once more. Or, well, eye-aviator contact, but that was just the reality of albinism, “if you want me to woo you then we have to get out of the car, right Dave?” He smiled, and the relief on Dave's face was almost palpable, making John grin wider. 

When they got out of the car, John just proved his point by going right for Dave's hand, holding it like he was scared he'd lose him. And, if John wasn't imagining it, Dave was resting his head on John's arm just a bit as they walked. It was domestic, and comfortable, and John felt his heart trying to jump out of his chest as the reality of what was happening really set in. After all, this was a date, no ifs ands or buts. It was what he'd wanted from the moment he'd approached Dave, but now that he was at the point where he could conceivably see himself asking Dave to go steady, it felt different. 

He didn't want it to be this way, but despite his best intentions and careful planning, it felt real. Dave was beside him, pulling his camera out to photograph some graffiti on a concrete pillar beside them, and John felt his stomach turn with something that was decidedly not disgust. Plus, he didn't know when, but Dave had become very attractive somewhere between their meeting and this moment, his freckles making his skin look like a rare orchid, and his smiles making dimples pop in his cheeks.

_God._ What was he _doing_ with himself?

He was so deep in thought that he didn't even notice Dave had pulled him to a stop beside a lavish fountain, pulling John in so he could take photographs of it, “come on Egbert, you said this was a fuck around downtown date, not a silent brooding date. Is something wrong? Fuck, if the whole thing about wanting to get another fetus to keep my first one company was too weird, I dunno what to tell you about ever other conv-”

“Dave, it's fine,” he tried a smile, and Dave relaxed, shrugging, “I'm serious Dave! I'm just thinking,” he'd called it a date. Twice. John hated the way it made his stomach flip, hated that somewhere along the line without his noticing he'd developed these stupid feelings and now he was too emotional to even woo Dave!

He must have looked pretty caught up, because Dave did back off, going to take his photos, and John stayed by his side, squeezing his hand tight. His cheeks felt warm, and not just from the sun. 

“Why a fountain Dave?”

“Pennies in the water.”

“Okay, so take one out,” the look Dave shot at him was understandable even with his shades on, and John laughed, easing up a bit. He liked Dave! Big deal. He also spent a lot of his time with Dave already, so suddenly being awkward was not only a waste of both of their times, but also just plain stupid. He just had to remind himself that, “ugh, fine, don't take one out. But I want a souvenir.”

“Then I'll buy you one of those shitty pressed coins,” John groaned, shaking his head, “no thanks, god, I think Jake has like five hundred of those, he always goes to them when we go on vacation and gets one of every single stupid pattern!”

“Well ain't that a goddamn waste of good pennies.”

“See! At least somebody gets it,” suddenly then, before he could stop it, Dave whipped around and shot a photo of his face, grinning triumphantly when he looked down at the display to a perfect rendition of John's angry pout.

“Jesus, you're adorable,” John didn't reach for his camera, knowing it was worth more than their friendship, all things considered, but he did sputter helplessly and swat at Dave's arm, “that's not a cute face! That's a dumb face. This is a cute face!” He tried his best at doe eyes, but Dave lasted only a second before he was cracking a smile, turning away to cover his mouth.

“Fuck- God, you look like a twelve year old when you do that.”

“Yeah? Well, kids are adorable and twelve year olds are kids!”

“Are you kidding me?” Dave shook his head, backing up a step, “kids ain't cute. Babies, sure. Toddlers, why not. But kids are goddamn trouble. They're _mean_.”

“What? Did some kid tell you that your shades look stupid or something?” Dave opened his mouth to reply, but then closed it, shrugging. A moment later realization struck John, and he frowned, reaching in to grip his hand again. “Seriously?” The irony of his own question wasn't lost on him, but he didn't focus on it, instead stepping even closer, not caring that they were still technically in a public place.

Dave didn't seem to care either, and he nodded, squeezing John's hand. “It's the pale skin, looks weird.”

For a brief moment, John was transported back to the lunchroom, his friends chattering excitedly about how ugly ghost boy Strider was. But, in this moment, Dave looked ethereal, even with hesitance etched onto his features. 

Gingerly, John brushed a fluffy curl from Dave's face, breathing out the moment he saw Dave's breath hitch, “you know, I think you look really beautiful Dave,” the urge to kiss him reemerged, and John would have, if not for the way Dave started smiling at him, a shy little thing that he'd hate to wipe off his face. 

Then Dave pulled away, smacking his arm playfully, “you ain't too bad yourself. Just try not to do any more of that stupid sappy PDA stuff in public, yeah? Makes my eyes all watery, I'm really allergic to it.”

“Pfft, don't worry Dave, I've got an Epipen. I'll protect you!” 

“Glad to know you come prepared,” John caught the smile on Dave's face, and it made his own smile automatically grow.

“Of course I would Dave! I have to protect you from the big scary PDA monster,” he gestured to their entwined hands, and Dave gasped, only to squeeze. Then, he pulled away from the fountain, walking back to the road.  
“Amuse me, Egbert. This birthday party sucks,” John sighed dramatically, letting his head tip back to the sky, but he relented, and the two of them switched directions to head to the boardwalk and amuse themselves with the arcade and shitty children's rides.

This time, Dave was the one who coughed up an obscene amount of money entirely in the form of quarters, pumping them one by one into a change machine until they had a paper cup of tokens each. They played for what felt like ten minutes, but really was over an hour, the two of them sucking at Skee Ball and kicking absolute ass at Deal or No Deal: The Arcade Game, until they were out of tokens and had pockets stuffed with tickets. 

The poor underpaid teenager at the ticket stand individually counted their tickets, and while John got a shitty plastic bug to hide in Jake's shoe, Dave got John a shitty ring pop that he stuck on his finger immediately, licking it as they went. (And, perhaps Dave licked it also, which definitely made John feel stupid when his first thought was, 'an indirect kiss.') 

Even two licks of the ring-pop had Dave complaining of hunger, and John relented when he started putting all of his weight onto John's arm, making John drag him. The two of them found themselves eating fish and chips together soon enough, sitting outside on the patio. Dave tossed the fries he'd complained so much for dramatically into the air to watch seagulls catch them before they fell, and John poured way too much vinegar onto his fries, only to eat them anyway because he was too damn proud to admit they tasted like shitty off-brand salt and vinegar chips. 

“You know,” Dave starts, while John rests his head in his hands, listening intently to him, “some asshole told me once that he knew a place where I could see a whole bunch of crows, right?” John nods, and he groans, “yeah- you get me, you know my thing with those assholes, this whole love-hate bullshit where they bring me gifts and I feed them but if I leave the window open too long those assholes come on in and shit on my bed and nab the house keys- third time they've done it, right? And Dirk won't install the goddamn screens, even though they're right there in the garage waiting for it, but I think the asshole just likes watching me clean my sheets of bird shit. Point is, I give a shit if some dude is gonna show me the crows, I wanna hang out with these assholes and crank the AC so they can't get in my window. So I go with him, whatever, I've got nothing better going on, it ain't raining, and I get some real neat photos of the clouds coming in,” he pauses, looking at John, who rolls his eyes.

“Come on asshole, keep going! You're killing me with the suspense here.”

The way Dave sat up straighter at John's comment was subtle, but John picked up on it, smiling a bit more when he realised just how much Dave liked having a captive audience, “yeah, cool, you don't have to throw a fit about it, I'll get there eventually. Cause that's what I did, right? I got there, this dude led me to this parking lot, and damn were there a lot of birds. Probably like fifty, I swear to god, they were everywhere! But they weren't. Fucking. Crows. That stupid shithead either thought he was real witty or he was just that much of a useless piece of shit, cause he led me to a parking lot of frantically mating seagulls having some sort of fucked up bird reunion. Like, damn, oh hey Sandra, this is Sandy. Nice to meet you Sandy, what's up with you? Terrorized any small children for their ice cream lately? Sure have Sandra, like you wouldn't believe.”

Finally, he ran out of breath, sipping at his glass of cola frantically while John laughed, glancing at the seagulls for a moment. “You know, they can probably understand you.”

Dave squinted at the birds, “they'll have to get through my closed window if they're gonna shit on the bed, so good fucking luck.”

“If you get stuck in a shitstorm, I'm abandoning you.”

“Fucking coward.”

“Damn right. You done eating?” He gestured to Dave's mostly empty plate, and Dave pushed the rest of his fries towards John, who devoured them in favour of his own sour mistakes. He still got the leftovers to go despite that, figuring that Jade would eat them. She'd eat her own toe if it got cut off, probably.

After that, they walked to the nearest theatre, trying to decide on a matinee purely based on whatever was showing next, and between those films, whatever looked weirdest. They ended up sitting in on a two hour Italian opera film. John got a big bucket of popcorn, still ravenous after his half-lunch, and Dave dipped into his bag on occasion, their arms brushing. The armrest between them was up, and they sat close, Dave resting his head on John's shoulder when the movie was particularly boring or when whatever semblance of plot understanding they'd gained was rapidly taken away.

When they left, they held buttery fingers tight, the two of them talking pompously about the characters until they got outside, where they both admitted in no uncertain terms that they had no goddamn idea what the hell had just happened on the screen. Although, John had to admit the music was pretty nice, and they both commented on the talent the actors possessed. 

“We're going to be driving for a bit, so you can use the aux cord again Dave, go for it,” the way he hurried to get out his iPod amused John, but when they were actually in the car driving he found himself analyzing the lyrics and the music to try and understand Dave a little better.

On the highway, when he didn't need to shift gears much, he held Dave's hand over the gearshift, ignoring the way his wrist cramped in favour of growing attached to the weight of Dave's palm in his own. It was a long drive, but Dave kept him amused the entire way, the two of them flirting openly the entire drive, compliments tossed back and forth until John was so pink in the face and flustered that he could barely focus on driving. 

A good hour of driving passed before they stopped at a gas station, getting the tank filled while they stocked up on shitty snack foods, grabbing all the hot dogs and pepperoni sticks and Doritos their arms could manage, all of them stuffed into the backseat with the tripod and blankets for later. The sky was darkening, and Dave fished out the jacket John had lent him, pulling it on.

Immediately, John was staring at him, “you look good,” he mentioned, and Dave hummed his agreement, climbing back into the car.

“You sure you didn't have an ulterior motive getting me into your clothes Egbert?”

“What, seriously? _That's_ what you worry about? Not the fact that I'm taking you out into the wilderness alone for hours at the time- just that I lent you my clothes?”

“I said you had an ulterior motive, not that you were a kidnapping murderer,” Dave rolled up an oversized sleeve on the hoodie, and John sighed, admiring him a moment longer before they were driving away together.

The rest of the ride was short-lived, John turning the car onto some shitty little dirt road that led up the most pathetic little mountain Dave had ever seen in his time in Washington, a road that ended with John parking the car and stepping out, breathing in the brisk night air. 

A moment later Dave followed, his aviators abandoned and his mouth open in awe as he walked over to John, holding onto his arm. It was cold up on their little mountain-hill, and Dave was shivering just a little bit, enough that John wrapped his arm around him and pushed his face into soft white hair. “We should get everything out, that'll warm you up.”

There was reluctance to pull away from each other, but Dave eventually agreed, and the two of them set up on a grassy slope facing the sky. John set down a blanket for them to lie on, and another to cuddle up under, both of them old and already smelling of the outdoors, but good and warm anyway. Dave grabbed the food and the tripod, the former left in it's bags on the corner of the blanket, and the later dug into the dirt so he could take some photos later.

For the moment, John watched with glee as Dave joined him under the blanket, the two of them lying close together as they stared up at the sky. Then the meteors started up, and Dave gasped, making John's chest puff out with pride. He could tell that Dave loved the date so far, and it meant everything to John that his planning had paid off with the object of his sudden affections so close, and so open to any ideas or chance to be together.

As Dave watched the sky, John alternated between watching it and watching Dave instead, only to have his arm gripped tightly when another flash of light shot across the sky. Dave sounded breathless as he spoke, voice full of awe when he said, “make a wish,” and then squeezed his entire face small, obviously focusing hard.

John turned to look at the sky again, thinking to himself. What was his wish? 

Well, he wanted to be with his family... But he was also overwhelmed with thoughts of Dave at the moment, intoxicated with his newly discovered emotions. In the end, he squeezed his eyes shut and made his wish, turning back to Dave, “what'd you wish for?” He asked, right as Dave opened his eyes to look at John as well.

“Can't tell you, or it ain't gonna come true.”

“Damn, that's a good point...” John sighed, before smiling at Dave, “that sucks, I'd want to help you make it true if I could.”

Dave squeezed his hand, nudging John as well as he could when he was lying down, “fuck off. It's your birthday, you're not allowed to get involved in this whole helping me shit, it's all about you now. You gotta tell me your life story,” he's quiet for a moment, and then Dave shifts, facing John properly, “remember when you said to ask you about that weird ass twin quadruplet thing?”

He had, hadn't he? John frowned, but nodded at the question, “yeah. Lemme guess, you wanna know about my birth?”

“If it isn't a problem, yeah. Don't strain yourself,” there was his out, if John wanted it. But he was still intoxicated with Dave, and he wanted to be open and honest with him, so he steeled his expression and shook his head.

“No, no. I _want_ to tell you. Besides, Roxy knows, so you deserve to as well,” he still sighed, both nervous and unsure of how to begin. It was hard to really sum up an event he only knew about through second hand account, but an event that was still so integral to his existence. Finally, he spoke up, “Jade and Jake are still my siblings, alright?” Dave shrugged, and then nodded, “they are, they're biologically my brother and sister, and they're twins- and Jane and I are twins- but we were born at different times, to different women.”

“Wait- you've gotta slow down a bit there Egbert,” John groaned, shaking his head.

“Shhh, okay? Lemme finish,” he was pretty tense, and Dave went quiet, squeezing his hand, “my mom, she wasn't supposed to get pregnant. She was infertile, right? Sort of. And she took a lot of hormone therapy stuff to try and get pregnant but it never worked, because of her uterus or something. Her eggs were fine though, so they took some eggs from her and sperm from my Dad and stuck it in a surrogate and then Jade and Jake were growing in there! Twins!” He was obviously getting excited, and not in the good way, but Dave moved closer, grounding him enough that John could swallow and continue on.

“Then- you know, they never used protection, since she was supposed to be infertile, but my mom got pregnant, and maybe because of the hormones in her _she_ had twins growing too and the doctors- the doctors told her she'd probably die, and my Dad said he wouldn't blame her if she aborted, but she wanted us and then Jake and Jade popped out and she _really_ wanted us, knew our sex and picked our names and had matching outfits for all of us, right? And then,” he swallowed, his breath leaving in one slow exhale before he continued, “well, the doctors were right. Jane came out, and apparently it was tiring but she was fine, and then.. God, I don't know, something went wrong and she flatlined and I came out and my mom was dead. Jane has her maiden name to remember her with.”

Dave was quiet for what felt like hours, and then he shifted, bringing John's hand closer to his face, “I'm really sorry.”

“What? It isn't your fault.”

“Still sorry I asked you on your birthday. Probably ain't the happiest day, is it?” John shrugged, trying to brush it off.

“I guess not,” a bit of an understatement, but Dave must have understood. John felt vulnerable, with Dave's shadeless eyes staring into his own, his entire self focused on John. It was hard to meet his expression, but when he did Dave lifted his hand, kissing his knuckles gently, while never breaking eye contact.

John felt his breath catch at the sensation. It'd been so sudden, but also somewhat expected, the type of expectant that he tried to ignore lest he get his hopes up and break his own heart later. And he'd been so open to Dave as well, but the touch didn't feel pitiful, it felt like the next honest step in their relationship. 

Despite that, there was hesitance in his features, his ideas of bet winning and his meticulous planning and his charade of confidence all lingering in the back of his mind, bubbling under the surface as he faced Dave's unwavering stare. Then, Dave moved closer, a hand coming out to touch John's face. He inhaled slowly, and John exhaled, and then Dave was moving closer inch by inch, the space between them closing with each movement he made.

Dave closed the distance between them first in a gentle, sweet kiss. John's lips were dry, and he felt Dave wince when his own lips caught on a square of dry skin, thumb rubbing John's cheek in apology for any pain he might have caused in that brief second, but he didn't move away. John sighed with relief-content-approval all mingled together, moving closer to Dave, his hand settling on the subtle curve of his thin waist. He felt so firm and strong in John's arms, nothing like the thin and paper frail teenager he looked like.

The kiss never became frantic, but their lips moved together for a solid stretch of time before Dave parted, a smile spreading across his face. With the aviators on his forehead, John could see just how red his eyes were even with only the glow of the sky, and he smiled right back, leaning up to bump their noses together. 

Dave's nose scrunched up, his smile showing his teeth, and John wanted to kiss him all over again, “happy birthday John.”

“Is my gift you?” He spoke before he thought, but the way he covered his mouth after made Dave's jovial smile grow.

“Course. One Dave Strider, free of charge. Ain't got no gift receipts though, so you've gotta appreciate the gift.”

“I will,” the last shred of hesitance melted off of John's face, and he grabbed Dave's hand, bringing it to his mouth to kiss gently. A moment later he groaned, using Dave's hand to facepalm himself, “our siblings are going to laugh so hard.”

“Yeah, well, maybe I don't give a shit 'cause I like you.”

“Maybe I like you too!” despite everything, John really did mean that, “and I want you to be my boyfriend. I'll take you on romantic dates like this, and we can eat lunch together and go on group dates and hold hands and kiss.”

Dave nodded with each suggestion, the hand that had been on John's face cupping his other cheek as well, “god yes. I don't even give a shit about the fact that you and me have been doing most of that shit already, I'll be your stupid boyfriend, of course I will. Jesus, did you really think I could say no to this?” 

He gestured to the stars around them, the blankets and the snacks and John himself, lying there beside him, “If I didn't know Rox was whispering shit into your ear about me I'd be real worried that you're following me home or keeping tabs on me and shit.”

John snorted, idly playing with Dave's curls as he spoke, “Dave, seriously? I just listen to you! I like listening to what you have to say, alright? That's why we're friends. Or, well... Maybe more now?”

“Definitely more, dumbass,” Dave stared at John for a moment, and then pecked him again, before sitting up to go fiddle with the borrowed tripod and get some long exposure shots of the sky, hoping to catch a photo of one of the meteors that occasionally shot through the air. Rather than get up to join him, John just admired him working, occasionally catching a meteor flying through the sky out of his peripheral. 

Time passed quickly then, his head in the clouds, Dave at the forefront of his mind. He ate snacks and fed his date, the two of them talking in hushed tones, both obviously giddy and tired at the same time. Eventually, it got late enough that they packed up, and the two of them drove home in a strange state of half wakefulness, both of them moving more on auto-pilot than anything. Luckily, the roads weren't busy as John drove.

Upon arriving at Dave's house, John led him to the door, and while he stood patiently waiting for Dave to disappear, instead he was startled with Dave pressing him against a wall, leaning in to kiss him firmly. It was more frantic than their earlier kiss, and John was startled by it until Dave moved away, lips quirked up and shades firmly on his face once more, “in case you miss me before our next date,” was the only thing he said before turning and exiting the house, leaving John breathless on his doorstep.

He had a boyfriend now. Happy birthday indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a real doozy. Thanks for sticking around through it all!


	6. John: Carry on Traditions

Birthday celebrations with John's family came around exactly three times a year. Once for Jade and Jake, followed closely by intense holiday celebrations that were more an extensive baking and eating celebration than any sort of religious event, once for his father, who used the day to celebrate his children and his kitchen, and once for Jane and John himself, who celebrated on the heels of a week long pranking adventure. What could he say? His family loved to celebrate.

They dressed up as well, and by dressed up he meant that Jake wore a pair of pants instead of shorts, and Jade brushed her hair instead of Rose forcibly doing it for her, and Jane wore a nice dress and pretty red lipstick and John did his best to look nice in his dress shirt and a Ghostbuster's bow-tie, but his unruly thick black hair continued to stick up every way it could, despite his attempts to tame it. Unlike his father, who had managed quite well, his thick salt and pepper hair gelled black in a slick and professional style that fir the caricature of the dapper father he portrayed to the world. All in all, they were an attractive family together, excited to go to their yearly John and Jane birthday dinner.

The five of them crowded into their family van, chattering amongst themselves eagerly. Although, they all avoided the topic of their significant others, which was alright with John. He had every plan to announce his blossoming romance to his family, but doing it in the car seemed anticlimactic when he was still swimming in the overwhelming affection he'd discovered just the day before, the lingering touch of Dave's lips still in his mind. Dave had mentioned their last kiss being something to keep John from missing him, but it really just made John anticipate their next meeting more.

It must have been obvious he was distracted from the idle chatter anyway, because Jake shook his shoulder, grabbing his attention with a cheerful, “what's got your brains in a bunch, old pal?” There was a twinkle in his eyes, and John just knew he was raring to get outside, his own emerald green bow-tie as spiffy and flashy as his demeanour. 

“Yeah, John! I can hear you thinking from over here!” Jade peered over the seat from where Jane had been speaking with her, a frown on her face, “and by that, I mean I can hear Jake trying to butt in on our conversation because you're not entertaining him enough.”

He turned an accusatory look to his brother, who flushed just a little with shame, “Jake, we have a Dad. Leave the girls alone to talk about whatever girl stuff they want to talk about.”

“You can't blame me for imposing on my sister's camaraderie when my own brother won't even give me the decency to hold a conversation!” 

John backed down then, while Jane leaned over as well to point an accusatory finger at Jake, “perhaps we'd invite you to the conversation if we didn't know it was _you_ who stole my sugar scrub!” 

John and Jade gasped, and Jake sputtered, before crossing his arms and sitting back, “my legs were just so darned soft.”

One mystery solved then, Jane shook her head and sighed, while John laughed, patting his shoulder affectionately. He understood why Jane would be upset, she was quite stingy with her cosmetics, using them conservatively, but Jake always preferred the liberal approach when it came to hygiene, which was fine in the woods with a bar of soap in the river, but not so fine when he was borrowing Jane's thirty dollar container of scrub. At the same time, he understood Jake's predicament. Jane's sugar scrub smelled like pure vanilla icing with none of the overly sweet taste that left his tongue and hands feeling sticky no matter how much he drank milk or cleaned himself afterwards.

Eventually, a solid minute after the awkwardness had passed, Jake leaned over to whisper to John, “all hijinks aside, Dirk gets his jimmies in quite a rustle when my legs are shaved,” John sputtered helplessly, shoving at Jake, who laughed at his embarrassment, which mingled with a strong question of if Dave of all people would want his legs shaved, which was not a question he'd planned to ask himself less than a day after their first kiss.

Somehow, he was saved by any more conversations by his Dad parking the car, and the five of them went shuffling into their restaurant of choice, a local dim sum place known for large groups such as their own frequenting. They came often enough and tipped well enough that they were seated quickly, the five of them sitting at a round table together. Jake was on John's right, and Jane on his left, with his father beside Jake and Jade beside Jane. With food already rolling by on carts they were quick to dig in, and for a moment speaking was forgotten in favour of absolutely stuffing their faces with as much warm, fresh food as they could handle.

It was only once the immediate ravenous round of feasting ended that the family turned to each other, eager to converse. Mostly, about the birthday twins, but also somewhat about their social lives. After all, they were a big and busy family, especially this late in the year, and sometimes family gossip wasn't shared.

“Say, John, what do _you_ think that Jade got you for your birthday?”

“Oh, geeee Jane, I sure hope it's that new video game I asked for, and not the new cookbook you asked for!” the two of them giggled, and Jade gave them a suspicious look, which John knew meant she was arguing the merits of checking the trunk just to see if they'd switched around their own gifts. They'd done that last year though! This year they had to be more creative. (There was a mento taped inside the cap of their two litre bottle of cola, but that was merely a ruse for the real prank, which was the blue dye on the cake icing that John _knew_ would make his family look like a bunch of shitty smurf cosplayers.)

“Well, if your gifts aren't good enough, I'm sure Bec could use a new toy anyway. Or ten.”

“Aw, Jade, come on! Loosen up a bit!” John grinned at her after he spoke, and Jane nodded, reaching over to brush a stray hair from Jade's face.

“I promise even if I get one of John's awful choice in games-” she was cut off by a cry of protest from the young man with the awful taste, but then continued on, “that I'll love whatever you got me, because it came from my favourite sister.”

“...I'm your only sister,” Jade sighed, and then smiled, “but, you're right. You two are just major assholes!”

“Jade, dear, no swearing,” their Dad glanced over at her, several green beans hanging from his chopsticks. 

“But Dad! You said we could swear once we were eighteen!” Three murmurs of ascent came from the table, and their long suffering father sighed, shaking his head as he returned to eating. He went through so much, but John knew from experience just how much he dished out as well.

For a while after that, things were calm. They talked about school and work, shared food by shoving it onto other plates, and giggled and laughed together as they did goofy stuff that was completely unbecoming of a group of five technically-adults. Then, of course, the topic just _had_ to switch to romance, and Jake turned to John, tapping him on the arm with an innocent smile that just howled trouble at the moon like the werewolf Jade probably wished she was.

“Say, chap, you never did tell us how your rendezvous with the other Strider went,” he still looked so innocent, _too innocent_ , and John squinted at him as he tried to decipher how much Dave had told Dirk, and how much Dirk had then told Jake- if anything. It didn't help that his entire family suddenly looked interested. Even his Dad was paying attention, and he normally stayed out of their gossip unless he was formally invited!

Maybe Roxy spilled the beans. She would. After all, it's not like John had told Dave to keep it a secret or anything.

Either his horror was just that visible, or Roxy had spilled the beans, or Jane just wasn't an oblivious loser and she knew her brother, because John felt a hand on his shoulder and heard a smug sort of glee in her voice when she added on, “I suppose after all the food he's been shovelling into that boy's mouth it'd be hard to say no.”

“Jane! Have you been wooing John's romantic interest with food?” Jade frowned, and Jane shrugged, an innocent expression on her face.

“Well, I couldn't simply let them live off of corn dogs now, could I? Besides, where else would I get a bag of jelly beans from? As If I'd buy such a thing myself!”

“But you _would_ , you gigantic sap. That's why I got them for you,” John rolled his eyes, and Jake sniggered.

Immediately, Jane waggled her chopsticks at Jake, glaring, “don't you laugh at me mister! Your boyfriend has been wearing a suspiciously large amount of green lately!”

For a moment, John thought he might have been in the clear. Jake was helplessly defending himself, tossing a similar accusation back at Jane, who flushed and sputtered and tossed that very same accusation right back at Jade.

But Jade was the most confident and casual in her relationship with Rose, and she felt no embarrassment at all shrugging off the comment with a smile, before turning to John with a predatory look, “you know, Rose told me that Dave came in wearing a blue hoodie that was a few sizes too big on him last night.”

Shit. Fuck. _Rose_. He'd completely forgotten about her own sneaky and invasive methods somehow, and his shock must have been obvious, because three sets of eyes wore three identical expressions of excitement- while his father watched on subtly from his corner of the table.

Finally, he groaned, his hands going up in the air in a show of exasperation, before settling at his sides, “fine! Yes, fine. Alright. Dave and I are dating!”

Immediately, a chorus of complaints about why he hadn't just told them started, but John shoved his hand out, shushing them loudly before he added, “I was going to tell you all tonight! And I wanted it to be special, but soooooomebody decided he couldn't keep his mouth shut,” he glared at Jake, who showed absolutely no remorse at all, “and apparently none of you know how to let me have a moment! But fine, you win. Dave and I are dating, I think he's pretty neat and he seems to like me, we only kissed twice there was no tongue and no, Dad, we don't need condoms thank you very much. I know where seven eleven is.”

His exasperated little speech was met with sounds of excitement from his siblings, with Jade jumping up from her seat to come hug him, Jake and Jane also staking their claims in some sort of sitting group hug. “Oh, John! This means you can come on dates with us!” Jade sounded so excited, and John winced at the thought of taking Dave on an intensive hike, which made Jane laugh- she understood the feeling.

“I'm not sure John and I are made for the great outdoors like you two are,” she commented, trying to seem detached and calm about the suggestion.

“That's preposterous! I'll have you know our noggins benefit greatly from a healthy dose of vitamin D!” Jake tried his best to sound stern, but John couldn't help laughing him off, rolling his eyes.

“Yeah, sure Jake- there's absolutely no other reason you'd wear tiny shorts out in the woods for hours at a time with your virile, young boyfriend.” Even Jade sniggered at John's comment, and she was just as guilty about planning prolonged trips in the woods with her own girlfriend. But, then again, she also shamelessly wore a hickey on her neck, her long hair just barely hiding it, while Jake was incredibly shy about his intimate life. It just made it more enjoyable to tease him, really.

Despite the enjoyment that came with teasing him, a fresh round of food silenced their discussions for a while, and the family went back to chowing down on dumplings and steamed buns and other warm, heart treats. John's Dad briefly spoke to him and Jane about their upcoming piano exam, (the last one they'd take, in all likelihood,) and once again quizzed his children on their solidified post-graduate plans. With no wildly varying stories from last time, he was appeased. 

Eventually, they were all too full to do much more than lean back and rub their stomachs, occasionally muffling a burp with their hands or sipping from plastic cups of lukewarm water. The bill was paid, and they shuffled to the car, comfortably warm and bloated from a good birthday meal.

By the time they'd arrived home the initial discomfort of fullness was gone, and all their energy levels rose as the family walked inside for continued birthday celebrations. Specifically, the birthday song.

Because John and Jane were the ones with a musical background, they got to suffer through an off key rendition of the music, blowing out their candles together. It was tempting to think deeply on his wish like he had before, but instead he simply hoped for a good life full of family, smiling at his siblings as Jane took the first slice of the cake, watching the thick icing part under the blade of the knife, giving way to the deep brown flesh of chocolate inside. John didn't really care for the cake, but as per birthday tradition he took the first slice, with Jane following suit, and Jane cut until her entire family had taken slices and migrated to the couch to speak- save for their father, who stayed at the table.

With lips coated in chocolate, Jade turned to John. “What made you, y'know, _like_ Dave?”

“What made you, y'know, like Rose?” he parroted back, before sticking his tongue out.

Jade stuck her tongue out right back at him, but then an inquisitive look crossed her face, and she finally admitted, “she was smart and dorky and really pretty and it was really endearing watching her pretend to know the first thing about quantum mechanics! And her nose always scrunches up like she smelled a fart when she hears something she doesn't like, and sometimes her lipstick smudges and you can see that it's a really blue based black, and she doesn't know how to act around Bec-” at mention of his name, Bec's head popped up, only to settle back down when Jade continued on, “so I don't know! It's not like we are some magic soulmate match or something, perfectly aligned to complete each other. But I like her.”

Jane, who had been nodding throughout Jade's talking, piped in with a quiet, “you know, Roxy isn't like me at all. I'm not sure I'd be able to handle dating someone like me. God knows Jake wouldn't manage a week if he had to listen to himself talk.”

“Gosh, Jane, way to spread a whole load of malarkey. I'd be lucky to catch a date with a riveting chap like myself.”

“Yes, and I'm sure Dirk would just _adore_ two of you,” Jane rolled her eyes, and Jade snorted, waving a napkin at her.

“Be nice! I'm sure Dirk has more than enough on his plate without Jake mentioning robotic clones. Besides, we're getting off topic! Because that topic is John and his new boyfriend.”

With the focus back on him, John shifted, uncomfortable. “Uh... I don't know why I like him?” He offered, suddenly drawing a blank. For some reason, his mind shifted back to the cafeteria, where his friends had torn down Dave for everything from his personality to his hobbies to his looks. 

Of course! His looks. If there was one thing John had learned by being near Dave, it was how polarizing his looks were, and how strange it'd been to cross the world from one pole to the other. “I don't know why anybody would think Dave is ugly,” he noted, feeling confident in his words, “you have to get close to see it, you know? But he has all these really pale freckles, and they scatter all over his skin and he looks like a piece of rice paper, the kind they use in spring rolls. And his eyes are really red and sparkly and his hair is really fluffy and he has dimples, two of them, and when he smiles he looks like he belongs in some stupid magazine about family life.” He sighed, his head resting in his hands, and Jane rested a hand over her own heart.

“You adore him, don't you John?”

“God, yeah. I don't know when it happened! I just wanted to be friends with him, but then I noticed that I was getting really flustered and I kept looking at him and I realised how much I love the stupid dorky stuff he does.” It was only half a lie, but despite his feelings running true and deep he knew the truth of how he got from strangers to tentative lovers was better left buried and hidden from sight.

The room was quiet for a solid minute after that, all four of the siblings stewing in John's words like carrots in broth, their expressions softening as they thought fondly of their significant others. John's affection was palpable, and it bounced off of all of them, fuelling their hearts.

Then, Jane's phone buzzed, and when she lifted it off the table she laughed, turning the screen to face John as she exclaimed for them all to hear, “Roxy says Dave can't shut up about you!”


	7. John: Navigate Social Situations

As much as texting Dave after their first kiss had been nice, excitement thrummed in his veins the closer he got to the school for what felt like the first time since his freshman year. Dave was going to be there though, and John had missed him a lot and really wanted to kiss him- if only to reassure himself that his birthday hadn't been some sort of side effect of the atmosphere.

Then he'd actually seen Dave, sitting out on a bench at the front of the school, using his phone to take photos of himself. John was curious who the photos were for, only for his phone to buzz in his pocket, displaying a new message from Dave. He'd pulled it out to look at it, and immediately he'd lit up, rushing to say hello.

When Dave saw him making a B-line, he stood up, only to be toppled roughly back onto the bench by John's overeager hug, followed up with a wet kiss to his pale cheek. Pulling back to stare at him, John couldn't help sighing, his feelings from Friday still eating at him in the best way possible. Yep, he sure did have romantic feelings for Dave. “Hey dweeb. You look like a douchebag taking selfies this early.”

Getting a snort in response, Dave leaned onto John, and John felt the telltale sign of Dave relaxing into his hold. He sighed, squeezing him as Dave spoke, “you look like a douchebag in general. We're a real match made in heaven.”

“At least I'm not a pretentious hipster douchebag!” John smiled, pressing his chin into Dave's hair, looking at the crowds of students still filing into the school, only occasionally paying a glance to the two of them together.

“At least I'm not a stuck-up jocky douchebag,” he countered, sounding very much like a half awake version of himself. To be fair, in all their time together John rarely made an effort to approach him before ten a.m., so the fact that he was so thoroughly sleepy was both new and endearing information.

“I haven't played a single sport,” he added- a weak defense.

“You sure hang out with a lot of sporty assholes.”

“It's alright Dave, you can say Jake and Jade, I won't tell them,” he kissed his head, and Dave pulled back to raise an eyebrow.

“That isn't who I'm talking about and you know it.” John sighed, shrugging. Dave was right, he knew exactly what was trying to be expressed. But so soon?

He couldn't exactly blame Dave, cementing his social circle was in his best interests, and John knew full well what some of his friends thought of Dave. At the same time, he still had two hundred dollars on the line- two hundred dollars he still desperately wanted. It was a balance, he figured. “They're not really my friends Dave, they're just my school friends! You know how it is. Besides, I'm the smartest person who will go within ten feet of them, and they owe me some money. Is that alright?”

There was hesitation on his face, but John kissed both of his cheeks, feeling touchy. It relaxed Dave, who nodded, leaning in to kiss John properly for a moment. “Yeah, I get it. But once you get that money you've gotta buy me a burger, alright? A nice one.”

“Ouch, only with me for my money? Harsh Dave.” He stood, dislodging his boyfriend, before brushing himself off. “I've got to go to class though! I'll see you at lunch with the others?”

“Yeah. I've gotta ditch ten minutes early though, using the black room in Photo and I've gotta get there early to claim the good spot,” Dave stood as well, slinging his bag over one shoulder. “See ya, shithead.”

John excused himself to head to his first class after that, his waving and smiles gone in favour of an early morning neutral expression that perfectly encapsulated the word 'uugh'. He had so much to think about, and he'd put it off as long as possible, but school had an awful way of bringing all problems to a head- even personal ones.

He still had that red notebook, the one where he'd been writing about Dave when they'd first met. And he knew what was in it! By now, most of the information was cemented in his brain, and all the half formed compliments he'd jotted down about Dave's smiles and personality had bloomed in his mind. And, really, he ought to do something with it. At the very least, he wanted to cross out his crueler thoughts to ease his conscious.

But he couldn't stand looking at the damn book. It made him feel guilty, like a real douchebag. Besides, he knew what Dave's hobbies and habits were, and he knew he'd be able to get Dave to go to prom with him now that they were dating, and he knew that he'd spend the night with seven other people he cared about, and that was all easy! But the plan. The plan had involved Dave growing tired of him- that had been a mistake. He knew now that Dave didn't grow tired of people. Instead, hobbies and interests changed and distance formed. Which would be fine! They had no hobbies in common anyway, their interest was based on personality. There was just one fundamental problem. 

He was leaving for California in less than four months.

John was sure that Dave wouldn't bother trying to hold up a relationship with a guy he'd known for less than half a year when they were hours apart. Hell, he wouldn't blame him for it either. Dave deserved a chance to spread his wings and fly, and he was so handsome and kind, John knew he'd meet tons of people in university who wanted his pretty albino butt. It just seemed rational to remind himself that even by the time John left, he couldn't expect Dave to be attached to him. But John fell hard and John fell fast, and he could already feel himself falling for Dave. Even now, just a few minutes apart, John was itching to be near him. God, he was so fucking helpless, and he hated that stupid notebook for reminding him whenever he saw it, sitting there on his work desk. Mocking him.

He spent his classes feeling dizzy with emotion for only about half an hour before he was able to calm himself down and focus. It was too damn late in the semester for John to let teenage emotions get in the way of his university dreams, and he could mope alone in his room later. Hell, he could mope with his siblings later, if he wanted. For now, he focused on lectures and notes and homework, only to find himself walking on auto-pilot to the table that his family ate at. The past while he'd been spending lunch alone with Dave, and before that he'd been spending it with his friends, mopey and angsty about his siblings. Now he was ready to eat with those same siblings before, this time with four exciting new additions. Thank fucking god, he needed a happy distraction from his own bullshit for a little bit.

When he made his way to his normal table, he caught sight of Jake sitting with Rose, the two of them talking. Sort of. Really, it was more like Rose was talking circles around him- at least, that's what John got from the dazed expression on his face. He walked up to them, sitting down with a grin. “Hey guys! Have fun in class?”

“I was just having a riveting conversation with this quickwitted lass right here!” Despite having suffered what John could only assume was an ego killing conversation for Jake's intellect, he was all good hearted smiles, and John glanced at Rose, who smiled at him.

“Oh, it's true. Jake and I were just discussing the finer details of the human psyche.”

John raised an eyebrow, and then leaned in close, faking a whisper at her, “was it phallic in nature?”

“You wound me John!” She pulled back, gasping, “when would an innocent young maiden such as I find time to talk about such a thing? Why, my brother must have filled you with all sorts of lies-” she paused, gesturing with her chin to the door, “ah. Speak of the dishevelled hipster devil himself.”

Dave walked up to the table, dumping his bag at his feet before draping himself over John, “you shit talking me to my boyfriend already Rose?”

“I'm only reminding your dear boyfriend here that crows are bad omens, historically.”

“Says the eldritch fetishist. Hey, you told Jade about your dabblings in summoning, right?” A hard look crossed Rose's face, but before either of them could continue the rest of their siblings began to file in.

“We'll talk later, brother dear,” her face looked like it could freeze lava, but Dave brushed her off, turning to share a high five with Roxy as she sat. John noticed that she was holding one of Jane's cupcakes in one hand, and Jane in the other.

Soon enough, two people had turned into eight, John's entire family and their significant others filling the table with conversation and laughter and, funnily enough, food. Usually he just let Jane pack food and stole from her, but he noticed that bags of Doritos and junk food and various fruits found their way into the middle from strange places. Even Dave pulled out a thing of Dunkaroos, offering a rainbow icing coated cookie to John, which he took with a kiss to the forehead. It was good, and homey, and comfortable- John decided he liked the pseudo potluck they had going on.

For a while, he just coasted onto everyone else's conversations, enjoying the mingled chatter. It was Roxy who grabbed his attention, reaching over to grip Dave's hand tight, which in turn jostled him. “Dave! When are you going to talk your boyfriend into going on a double date with Janey and I?” 

Jostled out of his trance, he was met with Roxy's laughter, “there he is!” Jane laughed as well, leaning onto Roxy. The other four didn't seem to notice the teasing he was getting, which he was glad for. 

“I haven't even been on a proper alone date with Dave since we got together! Let me woo him first. He deserves wooing.”

Roxy nodded, humming thoughtfully, “he really does. Fine, go woo him good! I want to see him blushing when he comes home.”

“I don't,” Dave countered, but John leaned over to kiss his cheek anyway. Dave shoved him lightly, only to pull him close again, “you all got real whiny last month when you were getting laid and I was at home hanging out with Mutie,” he waved an accusatory finger at Roxy, who only smiled more, “you were the worst! 'Oh Davey, you just need to get out and meet someone, I'll be your wingwoman, I have all sorts of experience with girls, I have the prettiest girl in the whole damn school on my arm!'”, Jane coughed, a flush rising on her cheeks, “and I told you all I was real fine, don't need no man, super fucking happy graduating, but now I've got a handsome guy to hang off of and suddenly I can't get some privacy.”

With his pointless little rant over, he slumped against John, who wrapped an arm around his shoulder while Dave began fiddling with an abandoned bottle of flat orange soda. “I guess it'd be pretty chill to hang with you two, but if anyone does embarrassing shit to me I'm breaking up with all of you.”

“Dave, you're only dating me-” Dave put a finger to John's lips, glaring across the table, “I'll dump all you fuckers and move to London.”

It was a joke, and John knew it, but his heart still curled uncomfortably, and he pressed his face to Dave's shoulder. “Take me with you, jackass.” If Dave knew he was unreasonably upset, he didn't mention it. He just shrugged, squeezing John.

“Yeah, sure, whatever. Guess I'll take you even if you're the one who's gonna fuck me up the most, you damn sap. Don't think I don't know what you are, taking me up to the mountains and giving me your jacket and telling me all sorts of real intimate shit,” he glared at John, and Jane chuckled, shaking her head.

“Oh yeah! Can I have that hoodie back?”

“No, it's mine now,” Dave frowned right up at him, and John sighed, absolutely charmed. That answer was miles better than Dave saying something like, 'yeah sure'. He couldn't resist leaning in, nuzzling him for a moment. John knew that they'd get annoying with their sappy actions, and their families could complain about it all they liked, but they were the ones who'd brought the two of them together in the first place, and now they had to face the consequences. 

“Christ, Dirk, those two lovebirds sure are friggin' affectionate,” hearing Jake's mutterings, John could only smile more, remembering how obnoxious Dirk and Jake were and are with affection. Payback, he thought, was only fair.

They ate from their combined table after that, the eight of them having a nice lunch together. John got to have some nice conversations too! He learned that Roxy was going into the same major as him, (except with a major entrance scholarship, that ass,) and that Rose had gotten her English teacher to 'accidentally' spill the final exam essay question, which she'd been selling heavily altered variations of to students for ten dollars. John had to commend her commitment to being cruel and profiting off of it.

Then Dave stood up, holding John's hand as he did. It took a moment before John remembered why he'd do such a thing, and then he stood as well, smiling at his family while Dave spoke. “Alright assholes, I'm off to lay my claim to the good equipment in the photo room. Don't let shit get too boring as fuck without me,” he nabbed a cupcake off the table, and John followed his lead by grabing a bag of chips. 

It was only a walk across the school, so it went quickly and quietly, but John was content. He was walking his boyfriend to class, romantically, the two of them holding hands- also romantically. It made him feel warm and fuzzy, and when he looked at Dave he saw the hint of a smile on his own face, which made him think Dave felt the same way.

Dave stops him outside the photo room, and they stand there for a moment, hands intwined. Finally, John sighed, leaning down to kiss Dave gently. “Go to class, asshole. I didn't walk you here early so we could stand in the hall taking up space. Go develop me some cool photos, alright? I want to frame one in my room.”

Shaking his head, Dave leaned in for one last kiss before he pulled away, “just you fucking wait. You're getting a Strider original- don't forget, it's famous as fuck and awesome as shit and anyone would be lucky to see it, let alone own it.”

“Good, then my family will be really lucky then! Bye Dave! Go be good at art!” John started backing up, forcing Dave to go do his work, and he walked away, intending to head to his own class to loiter outside the door.

Instead, he turned the corner and bumped right into Chris and Brendan and Brandon, who laughed at the undignified sputter he made before he righted himself. They were all smiles, and if John didn't have an almost stupid level of confidence, he might've felt intimidating. Instead, he shoved Chris lightly. “Fuck off, asshole. What do you want?”

Brendan (Brandon?) raised an eyebrow, a cocky grin on his face, “we saw you macking on that Dave kid.”

Immediately, John peered around the corner, but when he saw no Dave he rolled his eyes, lowering his voice to a whisper, “well, yeah? Come on, you told me to get him into me for prom. You thought I'd lose the bet? He's putty in my hands, so you guys better start getting the cash ready, prom tickets go on sale this week you know.”

“So you'll ask him?” Brandon-not-Brendan glanced at the others, and John sighed.

“Of course I will. Seriously, this wasn't a hard bet. I thought he was supposed to be hard to get or something?” John felt really skeezy talking like this after all that kissing, but if it was money he used for a good cause it was alright, he decided. For the greater good, all that.

The guys all snorted, their own voices low and menacing, “that kid's as flighty as a bird. Good luck keeping him into you.” John felt a hand clap him on the shoulder, and then they brushed past him, walking away.

Right. Flighty.

He'd written it in his notebook, he _knew_ that, but at the same time he'd convinced himself it wasn't an issue. He knew Dave was loyal to the people he cared about, and John assumed he was part of that category. At the same time, he didn't think their relationship would last.

He hated that knowing that stung.

John hauled his way to his next class, and the rest of the day, and then he went home and sat down and sighed to himself. He liked Dave a lot, and if they only had a few months together before things fell apart, he knew there was only one thing he could do- make the best of it.


	8. Dave: Fall in Love

Weeks passed, some of the most hectic and wild and tiring weeks of Dave's young life. Also, undeniably, some of the best weeks. God, he'd never thought that someone would care for him the way John did, but here he was weeks after their initial meeting, wondering how exactly he could have ever come to deserve the situation he did. He must've been some sort of pathetic ass martyr in a past life, dying cruelly and unfairly at the hands of a tyrant villain. As an apology for his suffering, whatever overlooking beings watched him must've decided that the ideal way to make it up was to give him a sweet and affectionate boyfriend who's endless care inspired smiles on Dave's face.

And love bites on his neck, but those were another situation altogether.

Either way, John had managed to worm his way into the shady recesses of Dave's heart, which had been barely used and barely looked at, full of cobwebs and dust. Then he'd come in with a broom and a smile and that stupid charming laugh he had, sweeping up all the mess until Dave's heart was skipping beats like a shitty remix of a pop song that really didn't need it, and he found that he had eyes only for the other. If that had been what John wanted, he'd succeeded. And, honestly, Dave's early worries about John's plans in talking to him all seemed like pointless paranoia now- John was doting beyond doting, chock full of sickly sweet movies he'd obviously picked up from one too many eager and honest and stupid sappy nineties films. There was nothing deep or mysterious about his feelings for Dave, he was as open as a book and fuck if Dave didn't want to pour over every word like a university student writing a thesis on a classic piece of literature. 

And god, good sweet lord above had John delivered on the promise of wooing Dave. After their first few dates (which he didn't hesitate to label as such anymore,) they'd gone all sorts of places together. They'd seen a movie together, and visited an art gallery, and gone to the aquarium, and taken drives together and gone bowling with their siblings and fed each other food both cheap and expensive. Yet, more memorable were the dates where they laid on John's bed, watching some shitty movie on his laptop while the two of them cuddled, John's nose in his hair and his hand curled comfortably on Dave's chest. Or the ones where they got so caught up showing each other shitty stuff on the computer that it grew dark, and he stayed for dinner and then he stayed over night, the two of them quick to tangle together in the bed, thankful for the remaining winter chill that made huddling for warmth comfortable.

The fact that he'd slept over with full romantic intention and John's father hadn't so much as batted an eye really comforted him as well. He was accepted as a good match for John, and John's family liked him and god did they love _his_ family, so to him things seemed perfect.

At the moment, it was a hot and dry early summer afternoon, late May. Senior classes had reached that strange limbo between impending nerves from finals, and the heavy fog of lethargy and unfocused buzzing excitement that senioritis caused. When the bell rang, Dave headed to John's locker, and the two of them left the school hand in hand, already buzzing with stories about their day and plans for the weekend.

“Hey, Dave, can I ask you something sort of serious?” One of the biggest things Dave had noticed was how when John spoke, he anticipated something good, rather than bad. Hearing that question, he nodded, expecting something good from it. Suddenly, John produced a handkerchief from... Somewhere, which he presented to Dave a nervous smile. More confused than charmed, Dave took the handkerchief, and opened it up, reading with wide eyes. Printed on the silk fabric was an invitation. “Dave, will you be my date to prom? I promise to make it magic.”

The first thought he had was to turn and throw his arms around John's neck, kissing him firmly before nodding. “Yes, holy fuck, obviously. You think I wanna go stag when I've got the cutest boyfriend in this goddamn school, you and me are gonna make prom king and queen. You think I'd look cute in a tiara, yeah?”

“The cutest.” 

John was beaming at him, and Dave leaned in, pecking him again, “god, you're such a fucking sap.”

“I can't help it, I'm dating the cutest person in the world, and he just said he'd be my prom date! Why shouldn't I be sappy?” He pecked Dave right back, over and over, and then started peppering his entire face until Dave was squealing and shoving him away, laughter bubbling out of his lips.

He was still laughing when Dave tugged on John's arm, glancing back at him, “come on, you promised me chicken nuggets, asshole. Stop flirting and buy me my damn lunch.”

“Alright, alright! Jeez Dave, stop being so hangry.”

“I should break up with you _right now_ for saying that,” Dave scrunched up his nose in distaste, and John laughed, walking them to get food. As promised, John ordered Dave his chicken nuggets, and a burger for himself, the two of them leaving with their meal to head home and at least pretend to do homework- although Dave would be stupid if he honestly thought they'd manage anything for longer than ten minutes before they were distracted by each other. John's flirting and date proposal hadn't helped, he was overwhelmed with images of the two of them kissing and dancing during prom to actually focus on homework.

“I have science to study for,” John groaned, and Dave laughed at him, even though he had a photography project due that was undeniably more time consuming than studying ever was. Then he groaned as well, leaning so heavily onto John that he was scooped right into his arms like a princess. It hadn't been the plan, but rather than complain, once he'd gotten his yelps and yells out, he pressed soft kisses to John's jaw as they walked.

“You're pretty much prince charming,” he kissed his neck, making John's shoulders squirm. 

“You're pretty much a giant needy princess,” was the reply Dave got, before John was pushing into the house and carrying Dave into his room. “Hellooooooo! Is anyone home?” Distantly, Dave heard Jade and Jake call- but no Dirk or Rose. He breathed out a sigh of relief, at the same time that John's eyebrows raised in a wicked grin. “They'll be gone in about an hour for a walk,” John concluded, and then rushed Dave up the stairs to dump him on the bed.

Catching himself, Dave sat up right as John climbed in after him, pressing Dave onto the mattress to do what Dave could only assume was a continuation of his earlier attempts to erode his entire face away with kisses. Laughing and smiling, Dave wrapped his arms around John's neck and steadied him, and rather than let him continue his rampage of smooching he pressed their lips together firmly, their noses squishing together until John shifted and kissed him back. John shifted above him, and Dave felt legs on either side of him, prompting him to arch up and pull John down, their bodies flush as they kissed.

They hadn't had sex- but moments like this, where their molecules were mingling and he could feel John's breath on his cheek, Dave had no doubts in his mind at all that it'd be good and new and exciting, and the second John initiated he'd be taking off his pants and wiggling his erection around like a shitty stripper. John would probably find it funny.

Still, John seemed in no rush to get into Dave's pants, and while that might have been an ego kill in another situation Dave could tell there was no lack of physical attraction, if the way he was kissing him was anything to go by. Instead, it just seemed like romantic and sweet John was looking for the perfect moment to seduce him, and also a time when his family wasn't in the house. 

Then he heard a thump downstairs, and Dave felt the moment shift, prompting him to push John away before they were caught in a compromising situation, “mmm, wait, what about science-” John kissed his neck instead, and Dave groaned, his head hitting the pillow.

“This is science Dave! It's chemistry, duh. You make a reaction in my pants,” he kissed Dave's neck again, and Dave snorted, tangling a hand in his hair. Smooth.

But... “Okay, fuck, what if Jade walks in on us?”

“She's seen worse.”

“What if _Jake_ walks in on us?” John pulled back to blink at Dave, and then he nodded, reaching for his bag.

“You're right, science homework is important.”

Dave chuckled, rolling onto his stomach so he could help John study. His own classes were easy, and as far as studying English, he had no incentive to do it with John when he could go home and get help from Rose. For a while, he recited flashcards at John and teased him when he got the wrong answer, kissing him when he got it right- an incentive if he'd ever seen one.

Then he'd heard Jade call up a quick, “going out with Jake and Bec, be back for dinner, don't get any weird stains on the couch!” and the slam of a door, and John had slammed his book shut and shimmied up to Dave, a hand settling on his hip.

“Ever played tonsil hockey?”

The pleased expression on Dave's face dropped, and he rolled his eyes, flicking John in the nose. “I should break up with you.”

“You say that a lot but somehow, I think you're even more into me,” John rubbed his nose with a grin, and then his hand moved closer to brush a piece of hair from Dave's face, making the offended expression on it soften. When it did, John smiled at him, the sun shining on his face and making his skin look golden. He was so handsome, Dave was stunned by how someone could look so good. “Anyway, you never answered my question.”

Relenting with a sigh, Dave leaned in until their noses touched, “you already know the answer, dickbag. Unless you forgot, you and me got all toungy last week in your bed. Didn't know you could bite that hard. Didn't know I could make sounds like that.”

“And I didn't know that my entire family could hear you moaning like a porn star because I gave you a hickey! I remember that!” There was a shit eating grin on John's face, so rather than try and justify himself, (which he'd probably fail at,) Dave just kissed him firmly, effectively keeping him from talking anymore.

Unsurprisingly, it worked. John kissed him back like there was nothing he wanted to do in the world more, taking off his glasses so Dave didn't have to, the two of them tangling together in the sun with John's homework completely abandoned on the bed. That was fine, they both knew that would happen when they went home together, and kissing was much more enjoyable anyway.

He was pretty sure this was what romance was supposed to be in it's purest form. The warmth and contentment that filled Dave when he was with John like this, like the logical conclusion of all of their conversations and firm touches and honest smiles was the meeting of their lips in a kiss. And when they parted, more conversations and touches and smiles would help them wind up to another kiss. It was enough to make his head spin, and it was definitely enough to get him overwhelmed, making soft sounds into the kiss that John returned in kind.

They kissed with closed mouths, and then with open mouths, Dave focused on not using too much tongue while he knew John was mindful of his breathing, which was a lot more strained than it had been a moment ago. John bit his lip, and Dave groaned, a hand tugging on John's hair, which made John pull Dave closer and kiss him with a growing hunger. 

When Dave pulled away to breathe he pressed their foreheads together, one hand taking the opportunity to get a choice grope at John's ass, drawing a burst of laughter from his boyfriend's lips. “How much time 'till someone comes home?”

It was a loaded question, and they both knew it. But Dave adored John the way he'd never adored anybody else, and the two of them were horny teenage boys, he'd made no promises to anyone holy or otherwise, and he saw no goddamn reason to hold back on getting it on if John was down for it. Which, by the way his eyes kept darting from Dave's lips down to his crotch was any indication- he was. 

“I have to call Jane and ask what she's up to, Dad won't be home for another hour and a half, and I'd say we have about the same until Jade and Jake come back. Here, I'll just.. I'll go call, I have to pee anyway, and make sure there are no weird growths on my junk suddenly. Stay here, okay?” He pressed a final lingering kiss to John's lips before he pulled away, smiling down at him.

Once John had left the room, Dave stood on wobbly legs to stretch, looking out the window at the suburban street below. There was a pair of kids riding their dorky little scooters down the concrete, and the sun was beginning to sink below the neighbourhood, washing the world in a hazy orange. John's room felt so homey largely because of the window, which left everything feeling natural. 

When a minute passed and John hadn't returned, Dave decided the only logical thing to do was some superficial snooping around his boyfriend's room. 

The first thing he noticed was the Ghost Rider figurine sitting on John's bookcase, sitting beside a cheesy Halloween ghost decoration and a picture of John with his entire family at Universal Studios. God, he was so fucking dweeby, it was endearing beyond belief.

Then he'd turned to John's desk, which currently held his closed laptop and some miscellaneous papers, along with a cup full of pencils and pens. And a really red notebook. That shit was firetruck red and Dave's first instinct was to pull into the curb and let it pass. Except for the fact that it was a book, and he couldn't exactly pull over for it. He didn't want to anyway, no shitty little notebook was going to have that power over him.

Instead he was suddenly interested in looking inside it. He saw no reason not to. After all, it was probably just some homework- if it was secret then John wouldn't leave it out in the open with all of his other stuff, or he would have had the decency to tell Dave to leave it be.

With his logic solidified, Dave lifted the notebook up, opening it up to the first page.

And then his heart dropped.

Two hundred dollars to win his heart, written there in pen on a shitty little piece of paper.

He should of closed it right then. After all, it was obvious what was in that book. He should of closed it, and put it down, and confronted John, or texted his family, or anything. Instead, he was rooted to the spot with a surreal sort of horror, like he was reading from outside of his body.

John had written down how to get him to fall in love, word for word, line for line. Buy him food, compliment him, hold his hand, get along with his family. His birthday was written there, and notes about his albinism, and his favourite foods, and all sorts of date ideas. 

Dave swallowed, a hand reaching up to wipe away tears he hadn't even realised he'd shed. It was enough to put him back into his body, and he closed the notebook, clutching it in his hand so hard the plastic warped.

John lied to him. Everything- all of his touches and kisses and moments where he'd listened and moments when he'd spoke, it'd all been bullshit that he'd sprouted for money. No wonder his friends laughed when Dave passed them in the hallways.

Loving him was just a joke. He choked on a sob, struggling to grab his backpack and pull his shoes back on quietly- the last thing he wanted to do was face John, because he knew he'd do something drastic like break his pretty little nose and cry in his bedroom among the wreckage of their brief relationship. Instead he ran for the door, letting the bedroom slam behind him as he sprinted down the stairs and frantically opened the front door.

The last thing he heard as his feet hit the concrete was a panicked, “Dave!” From inside the house, but he just ran harder, fighting down the tears that threatened to spill down his cheeks, and the sadness stuck in his throat that was making it hard to breath.

He was only worth two hundred dollars- barely.


	9. John: Wallow in Regret

The sound of footsteps running from his room was sudden and startling, and John's first thought was that something had lit on fire. The second was that Jane was home with Roxy, and Dave was rushing to greet his sister.

Then the door had closed behind it, like a windy afterthought, and John was a little more frightened. He'd stepped out of the bathroom, hands still wet, and seen Dave running from the house with a desperation in his steps that John could see even as he ran away.

A confused, worried call of his name passed John's lips, but after a few moments of standing at the top of the staircase, he realised Dave wasn't coming back. 

Then he'd realised what exactly could startle his boyfriend so thoroughly that he'd go running from the house frantically, and John had gone pale, rushing for his bedroom. He ripped the door back open, and rushed to the desk, scattering papers as he went through the piles of work on it.

No notebook.

The strangled sound he made didn't process in his mind, but John sank to the ground anyway, putting his face into his hands. He didn't cry- no sort of emotion like that came to him- but he did feel despair curl in his gut like a worm, gnawing at the walls of his stomach and eating away at his happiness. How could he even explain that? It was his own fucking fault for leaving it out, but he'd undeniably hurt Dave.

After a minute, John realised that the only solution to this problem was openly apologizing, and telling Dave how handsome and sweet and kissable he was, and then buying him presents. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, and frantically dialled Dave's number, holding the phone to his ear with shaking fingers. 

The familiar sound of Dave's voicemail, a simple and professional, “hey my name's Dave, I'm not here right now, leave a message at the beep,” made him groan, and then he held the phone tight and spoke frantically. “Dave. Dave, I need you to call me back, okay? It's not what you think- that notebook, it isn't what you think, and I'm really sorry and I want you to talk to me please-”

A long beep sounded, and John turned off the phone, putting his head into his hands. This was bad. Which, honestly, was an understatement. John could practically feel his relationship with Dave crumbling, and it made his stomach flip, a heavy curl of nausea in his gut startling him and making his eyes water. 

What if Dave never talked to him again?

He felt the broken sound that escaped him rather than heard it, and he dialed Dave's number again, hugging himself close. The message repeated, and he breathed deeply, hugging the phone. “Dave? It's me, it's John, I'm really sorry and I want you to call me and I'm sorry and please talk to me.”

He hung up before he could say something worse, and put his head between his legs, whimpering softly. The click of a the front door opening didn't stir him, but the thumping footsteps up the staircase did, and John jerked to full alert when his bedroom door slammed open.

“Jonathan Egbert! You are in SO much trouble right now!” He groaned, mentally preparing himself for a barrage of well-deserved insults as Jane walked forwards, forcibly hefting him up by his arms. “What is _wrong_ with you?!” A lot of things, he figured. He could hear Jane's phone buzzing in her pocket- likely lighting up with texts from Dave's family about how he was feeling, and John's fingers itched with the urge to snatch it away and desperately call him through Jane's phone.

But John didn't need to be in trouble for stealing as well as hurting people, and instead he shrugged her off and stepped away, crossing his arms across his chest to protect his heart from the verbal pummelling he knew was about to receive. If not from her, than from someone else. “How... How is he?”

“How is he? You're asking me how Dave's feeling? John, what the hell is wrong with you! How do you _think_ he's feeling? He just learned his boyfriend was dating him for a bet! We ALL just learned that!” Her tone sounded exasperated, and John couldn't blame her- he didn't feel good about what he'd done either, and knowing full well what she was implying made his stomach curl. No amount of defense to her would change the fact that Dave was broken-hearted somewhere, and he hated that. It sucked a lot. It sucked the biggest dicks ever.

“I didn't mean for him to find it!”

“What, you thought it'd be better to hide it? John, you dated him for a bet! Why? What could have possibly been going through your head to make you think that was a good idea for a prank?” Her voice went genuinely soft with confusion, and then she frowned, hugging herself. “I thought you knew better...”

He wanted to argue, but what could he say? Now seemed like the worst time to pin the blame onto her and Jade and Jake for ignoring him, and he couldn't exactly explain it all away as peer pressure- Jane was right, he knew better than that. He knew what he'd done was cruel as well, at least when he'd started.

It meant all he could do was tell her, as honestly as possible, “Jane, it wasn't supposed to go this far, it was never supposed to get this bad. But then I was hanging out with him, and I started falling for him and I was going to stay with him afterwards and I'd treat him right, I have been treating him right! I spoil him!”

She scoffed, shaking her head. “You're full of shit John. I could hear him over the phone.”

Immediately, desperately, he perked up and stepped closer to her, “what'd he say? Come on Jane, please tell me?”

“No! You don't get to talk to him! He's cried enough because of you, now go downstairs and sit on the couch and think about what you've done!”

With no real incentive or energy to argue, John slowly dragged himself down the staircase, with Jane angrily stomping behind him the only thing that kept him from sliding to the floor and rolling painfully down the staircase. Instead, he moped down and sat on the couch, bringing his knees to his chest. 

The door opening again was no real shock, and John barely reacted as his other two siblings came storming in, metaphorical guns ablaze. 

“What the flip shitting Christ were you thinking John!” There was Jake. He didn't have enough energy to fight them- not like this- and instead shrugged in response to the question.

“Good gravy! You'd think this sort of thing wouldn't even entertain a tango in your noggin, and here we flipping are,” he flopped down on the couch as far from John as possible, and John looked up at him, only to get a solid stink eye. He looked away. 

“Why'd you do it John?” Jade kneeled down beside him, and it almost would have been nice if she wasn't talking to him like she talked to Bec when he peed on something that didn't need to be peed on. “You knew it'd hurt him.”

He sighed again, long and hard, and then pushed her away. “You guys will only get angrier if I tell you! I get it, alright? I fucked up, and I hurt Dave. Can we move on already?”

“ _Move on?_ John, in case you forgot, Dave just found a notebook that _you_ wrote that describes- in vivid detail- how you'll make him fall in love with you and then dump him. You think we're going to just move on from that? That's my girlfriend's brother, you jackass! And he deserves better than this! And now he's over there crying his eyes out because he _actually fucking trusted you, you fuckface_ , and all you can do is feel sorry for yourself because you think we're overreacting?! You... You... Uuuugh!” Her clenched fists were thrown into the air, and Jade stomped into the kitchen for some air while Jake and Jane nodded on in agreement.

Nobody spoke while Jade was gone. John heard the angry gulping of water from the other room, but nobody else bothered to yell, despite the tension sparking the air with electricity. He itched with it, and slowly uncurled himself, taking a few deep breaths. “I was jealous because none of you were going to go to prom with me anymore, alright? And my stupid friends told me he was a flighty loser that would get tired of me anyway, and then they offered me money and made him sound like a real dick and I said yes. And then I realised I liked him, and I was going to get rid of the notebook and he found it instead.”

This was it. This was the moment when they'd all realise that they'd abandoned him, and they'd go in for the hug and apologize and call him a stupid asshole some more, but more endearingly. And then the four of them would sit down and have a long talk, and he'd apologize and say that their dates were all pretty sweet and alright anyway, and they'd text Roxy and Rose and Dirk, and get Dave to come over, and John would apologize with a giant chocolate cake and a chicken fetus in a jar and Dave would go to prom with him again. 

That was how these things worked. He'd made a mistake, but he was repenting and they'd forgive him of his sins.

Except they didn't. Jane's face softened with surprise, but then it hardened again in anger. Jade scoffed, crossing her arms, and Jake stood up, backing away like he couldn't stand to sit near his brother. 

He heard Jake whisper something to Jane about a douchemuffin, and Jane nodded quietly in solemn agreement. 

“John, this is the most selfish thing you've ever done,” John winced, and Jade frowned, crossing her arms. “Don't act all hurt! I didn't think you were this much of a dick, but if this is really what you think is a good way to tell us you're lonely, then fuck you! You dick. You giant raging cock.”

Jake grabbed her arm and pulled her away, and Jade continued, yelling on about how disgustingly phallic John was, even as she was taken outside for a breather, Bec trotting out after them- like even he didn't want to go on the couch if it was tainted by the new worst sibling.

That left only Jane, who had been angry first and now just stared at him sitting there, standing over him. “I can't even be mad anymore. John, I just don't understand it, I don't understand you. You've always been a twin I was proud to have, but if you've turned into someone who can do things like this, I don't think I can reasonably say I'm glad to be related to you.” She turned away, walking out of the room, leaving him to wipe at his eyes, which had become mysteriously wet while they'd been speaking.

He knew they were right, obviously, but their anger didn't help John with anything- it just soothed their own need to vent. It didn't change the fact that Dave was somewhere with his siblings, perhaps crying, and it didn't give John anymore information than that. But Dave was hurt, and John needed to fix what he'd done, somehow. 

He just needed another plan- a plan that would take into account everything he knew about Dave and his family, and a plan that would finish with him delivering a speech he'd prepare in advance about how Dave was the best person he'd ever met outside of his family, and he wanted to apologize and do anything to gain his forgiveness.

It wasn't exactly going to be easy- Dave was probably going to harbour a lot of anger once he stopped being upset- but John was stuffed full of puppy love, and with the feeling of Dave's lips on his own still lingering in his mind, he was burning with the desire to find a way to fix things. It didn't matter that everybody wanted him to leave Dave alone, he was sure that Dave wanted to talk to him as much as John wanted to find him- even if that talking was probably mostly incoherent yelling and crying.

Ugh, just thinking that made his heart hurt, and he let out a shaky breath, hugging himself tight around the stomach, holding in all his feelings before they could bubble out as frustrated sobs. He'd fix things with Dave. He'd prove his siblings wrong, and he'd make it up to everybody by doing what was right by his boyfriend. He'd save this relationship, he swore on it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're enjoying this fic and want to support me, consider [tipping](https://ko-fi.com/A6873KP)! It means a whole lot, and every little bit helps fuel my writing muse. And, as always, thanks for reading and enjoying this fic, and thank you for all the likes and kudos so far! <3


	10. Dave: Face Heartbreak and Die Trying

Friday had been fucking awful- which was a shitty understatement, but Dave was too fucking tired to manage anything better or more verbose. He'd held back his frantic tears until he'd gotten home, but once Roxy had touched him he cracked like an egg dropped off the Empire State building, handing over the notebook with trembling hands, and trembling everything. Then he'd cried until his eyes hurt, babbling incoherently as his siblings had poured over the evidence of John's cruelty, their shocked sounds only making him sob more, even as he was scooped into a comforting group hug. He knew they'd texted John's family, he knew John was probably getting in absolute shit, but knowing he was getting hurt didn't give Dave any reprieve or make him feel better. Everything about him ached, and he'd only fallen asleep because he'd cried so hard his eyes couldn't stay open. 

Saturday had been better, but no amount of strawberry cheesecake chocolate fudge blizzards could make him feel less numb, and no amount of encouraging texts from Jane and Jake and Jade helped. Even hugs from his own siblings couldn't make him smile, instead just registering as idle warmth on his skin. Shit sucked serious ass, and for a little bit he barely even felt like a person.

By Sunday his entire self felt like how his mouth had felt after getting his wisdom teeth removed: bruised and uncomfortable. By Sunday he felt sore and sick, barely able to stomach food, his body working on auto-pilot. Rose had put his homework in front of him and he did it without complaint, Roxy put laundry in his hands and he folded it without comment. He just worked automatically, not thinking while he did. And he knew his siblings checked up on him often, but he really didn't offer much more than grunts and sighs and neutral expressions as he lazed around unhappily.

Monday had been... Weird. He'd gone to school with his family, who seemed genuinely more concerned with him than with their significant others- despite prom looming and romance permeating the air. It was nice, even if he felt a bit guilty for taking them away from the people he thought they really wanted to be with. Hell, he even got a hug from Jane when she approached them, a big tight one that he'd buried himself into. She smelled like vanilla, and it was comforting, but she also smelled like her house- which John smelled like too- and he pulled away with a conflicted knot in his stomach. But her smile had been so gentle, he'd almost cried on her and repeated his Friday night in her arms all over again, until Rose had guided him away with a gentle touch. 

He was emotionally drained, and even after four solid days he felt like shit. His head hurt, his heart hurt, and his entire body felt tense with worry while also feeling like an uninhabited shell. 

He hated that he knew John wasn't there.

He hated that he wished he was.

It's not even as if John himself had that much of a hold on Dave's life, he told himself. They were such a new relationship, and if John had just broken up with him, it would've stung, but he would've moved on. What hurt him so strongly was the idea that everything was a lie, and, more importantly, that he'd made the mistake of opening up to someone who played the 'ask that loser out' game for keeps. That _fucker_. That shitty, disgusting piece of shit. That obnoxious, stuck-up douchebag! Who did he think he was?

He wasn't even worth the shoes on his feet. He wasn't worth ten fucking dollars. He wasn't worth Dirk's shits after taco night. But Dave wasn't worth anything to him, and he was obviously the equivalent of a condom in John's eyes, or a napkin. Meant to be used, not worth anything.

Dave pushed the palms of his hands into his eyes, his aviators shoved up to his forehead as he groaned. He was officially all cried out, his tear ducts probably shrivelled up for the next ten years, and all he could manage was a dry, painful sensation behind his eyelids that he pushed hard on to force away. Why did it have to hurt so bad? 

He'd be fine, he knew that. Everybody was on his side, and everybody would support him, and John fucking Egbert could go get run over by a semi truck in the middle of the ocean for all he cared- he didn't want to see him ever again. And if he told himself that enough, it'd hold true.

That night, he'd had a quiet dinner with his family. Just the four of them, curled up on the couch eating burritos that Roxy and Dirk had made together. Nobody asked him to do anything, and if he hadn't felt so pitiful he would've enjoyed the royal treatment a whole lot more. He would've teased them relentlessly for being so soft with him.

Instead, he laid his head on Roxy's shoulder, ignoring the movie playing on the screen. “Why'd he have to do this Rox? He was so fucking _nice_ , what the hell did I do to deserve this?” He stared at the wall, idly playing with the sleeve of her oversized pajama shirt, toying with a loose thread. “I really thought he liked me, you know?”

She pressed an affectionate kiss to the top of his head, and then smoothed down his hair, sighing. “I dunno Davey. We all thought he was good for you too, nobody saw it coming. He's got shitty taste if he doesn't see how much you're an awesome boyfriend though! He was lucky he got as far as he did,” she sighed again, and Dave heard her mumble something about not being as lucky with a foot in his ass, but Dirk interjected. 

“Jake knows why. Apparently he told them,” Dave visibly perked up at that, and Rose sighed, reaching over to rub his shoulder.

“We all know it isn't simply because he has it out for you Dave. If that's what you're worried about.” Her touch was comforting, but Dave brushed her off, sitting up. 

“Why the fuck would I think that?” He had, and did, think that. “Dude's obviously got some sort of douchebag quota he's gotta fill and I was conveniently in the way. So what the hell did they say?”

He ignored Rose's concern, leaning into Roxy's touch as Dirk raised an eyebrow at him, and then turned to his phone. “According to Jake- mind you, he was there, but John was in pretty fucking hot water and it might've been a pity grab- but according to him John had a nice little story about feeling sorry for himself that we all nabbed his siblings and stole his prom dates.”

Dave blinked a few times. Then, Roxy and Rose burst into unceremonious laughter, shaking Dave as they let it all out, their laughter loud and infectious to each other. Only when they could breathe did they try to speak, Roxy wiping tears from her eyes. “That's a load of, pffpt, horseshit!” She laughed a bit more, and Rose leaned on her, wiping her own eyes.

“Does he really think anybody would believe that?” Rose chuckled, shaking her head, “honestly, he'd be better off admitting he just wanted money. At least that would be a believable excuse.”

While they'd been laughing, Dirk had watched quietly, and then he turned to Dave and raised an eyebrow. “What about you? Doesn't matter how little you know him, you still hung out with him the longest. You think he means it?”

He could've said yes right then, Dave knew that. Sure, he was the baby of the group, but nobody would judge him for saying honestly that he thought John could full well have been that desperate for his family's affections. He thought back to when they'd been lying on a blanket outside together, and John had told him about his mom and his siblings, the open pain and honesty in his eyes. Looking at his own family, he thought he could understand. He could see where John was coming from, in a way, and he could see that being the reason he'd done everything he did, as cruel as it was.

But he didn't say any of that, and instead he brought his knees to his chest and scoffed. “As if. He's just saving face, asshole thinks if he plays up the pity card enough he can get away with whatever bullshit he wants.”

“That's my baby!” Roxy's arms went around his neck from behind, and he smiled a bit, leaning back. His family really was being supportive, doing their best to make sure he didn't feel alone. It felt good knowing he could cast his anger aside and let them do the dirty work for him, especially since he was so fucking tired. He owed them a lot.

Sure, he didn't go into school on Tuesday in top condition, but he did feel a bit more confident knowing that no matter what happened, his family would love him and support him. He didn't think John could say the same about his family at the moment, which made Dave feel strangely proud and triumphant. If John really had done all this for his family, it'd backfired awfully.

It seemed that he always had at least one person with him that day, aside from his classes. When he got to school, Rose walked him to his locker and his first class, and after that Dirk took him to his second, Jane and Roxy taking him to his third. It went on like that all the way through until lunch, where he sat with Jade and Jake and Dirk and Rose, the rest of his family off doing something.

Once again, he noticed that John wasn't there, but this time he leaned in and asked, “where the fuck is John?”

He hadn't gotten an apology, but he hadn't even _seen_ him, and it was starting to confuse and concern him in equal doses. Had he dropped out? Or was he just pointedly avoiding Dave? But the school wasn't nearly that big, and he had no idea how they could have managed to miss each other for a day and a half.

Dirk and Rose just shrugged, and Jade let out a long winded sigh, but Jake squirmed uncomfortably as he glanced at the door. Pursing his lips, Dave looked between them all, before focusing on the poor guy that looked like he was going to shit himself. “Is there something going on that you aren't telling me?”

“Gosh, these chairs sure are pricky, aren't they Dirk?”

With his chin in his hand, Dave watched Dirk turn to Jake, frustration and amusement both clear on his face. “They're vexatious little fuckers, ain't they?”

“Alright, so what the fuck is going on? He ain't dropping out, right?”

Jade perked up then, shaking her head, “what, no, of course not! John wouldn't skip, he's just-”

Whatever her well thought out excuse for John's disappearance was, it died on her tongue when the cafeteria doors swung open to reveal the man in question, hair even more mussed than before, his face set in anger. “Holy shit! Will you guys stop trying to get in the way? I just want to talk to him, alright? He's my boyfriend!”

John's voice carried, and Dave's jaw fell open as everyone stopped to stare at this argument, as loud and boisterous as it was. John had started walking over to their table, and Dave held his breath right as Roxy stepped in his path, a few inches shorter but a few miles more imposing as she stared him down. “You think you can just come in here and step all over my baby brother? He doesn't need this from you, shithead!”

“Yes he does!” Embarrassed, Dave turned away from the scene, a few curious eyes darting over to where he was sitting. Fuck, why'd this have to happen here? John just kept going as well, holding his ground. “He deserves to hear what I have to say without it being filtered through all of you! Come on, Roxy, you're being stupid!” He turned to Jane, looking for help, but she crossed her arms and glared.

He must have realised they weren't going to give him what he wanted, and he glared at them before calling right past Roxy, using a voice dripping with so much genuine remorse that Dave's heart hurt. “Dave! Dave, you'll talk to me, right? Come on, _please_. I know I fucked up really bad, and you don't have to forgive me, but I really want to talk to you.”

The effect was lost a bit by the fact that Roxy and Jane were making motions for Dave to turn him down, and it would have been easy to. Obviously his family didn't want him interacting with John, at least not when the wounds were so fresh, but...

Well, he had to admit that he wanted the story from the source, and John sounded like he meant it, and if he got the answers he wanted it'd be easier to move on. So he swallowed and steeled himself, giving a curt nod. “Fine. Three fifteen, by those busted portables. If you're not there I'm going home.”

He heard Jade hiss into his ear, a frantic, “ _Dave, seriously?_ ” and he turned, shushing her. It'd be fine, he'd be fine. The worst of everything had already passed, and he figured if John Egbert had already fucked up and broken his heart, it really couldn't get much worse than that. He could stand there and hurl insults until he was blue in the face, but it wouldn't matter. Dave just wanted a goddamn explanation.

Pleased enough with that answer, he walked right back out of the cafeteria, obviously not quite stupid enough to push his luck by trying to sit with them. That was fine, Dave needed a breather, and when Roxy and Jane there he was already tired enough. He stole the cupcake from Jane's home lunch, and cuddled up to his sister, and everyone was nice enough to do him a favour and not bring up the meeting looming over his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will _not_ be a regularly scheduled update next Tuesday, as I'll be busy running and participating in [Johndaveweek](http://johndaveweek.tumblr.com/) over on Tumblr! Be ready for seven days of fics from me! And, as always, thank you for all the kudos and comments! If you want to continue to support me, consider [tipping me](https://ko-fi.com/A6873KP). Thanks for sticking around!


	11. John: Make Up for It

He'd said three fifteen, and John had left class at three sharp, citing an excuse about his Dad taking him to the dentist- an excuse his teacher bought, thanks to his trustworthy demeanour in that class- before darting out the doors to stand by the shitty portables. That had been ten minutes ago, and he was wringing out his hands nervously, shifting from foot to foot as he worried. Was Dave going to come? Did the others talk him out of it? Was he at the right busted portables? They looked pretty decrepit, but maybe Dave knew an even shittier set of metal learning boxes, he always knew the best places to take photographs.

God! How had he fucked up so badly? He pushed his palms into his eyes again, pressing hard- and then turned and punched the rusted wall of a portable, letting the sound reverberate through the area and filter out through the trees into silence. He couldn't stop thinking about Dave, and absence sure as fuck made the heart fonder when it was his own goddamn fault Dave was so far! If he'd only put that notebook away his boyfriend would've been none the wiser. 

Without realising it, John had begun to stare at the wall blankly when Dave had arrived. He was unaware of the pretty albino boy standing there, blissfully unaware of the sad look on his face, hidden by the oversized aviators he protected his face with.

Then he'd heard a soft, “Egbert?” and he'd whipped around, stumbling back a step before he righted himself.

“Dave! Oh god, I thought I'd gotten the wrong portable or something,” god, he was so pretty. How had John never noticed it the first time he'd seen Dave? How had it taken him until his birthday to amuse the idea? Even then, he'd never thought of how he'd look, it was just the warm fuzzy feeling of meshing personalities. Now, standing further away, he could see the way Dave's skin was radiant and his hair was adorably fluffy and his body was just right, proportionately. His face was the same way, but better. Like it was sculpted out of marble.

He stared for so long that the confused, introspective look on Dave's face disappeared, replacing itself naturally with unamused anger. “Seriously? You wanted to talk to me, stop trying to burn a hole through my skin and stall for time, just get it over with already so I can go do something useful with my time.” Oh. Fuck. John winced, wrapping an arm around his waist protectively. He deserved that, he guessed, but it still stung.

Alright, step one. He swallowed, and then stared Dave right in the eyes, trying his best to put as much sincerity and remorse into his expression as possible. It was hard though, he never felt like his face expressed his feelings well enough, and even as he tried to show it he felt dishonest. He still pushed onwards, desperately hopeful he'd be able to get through to Dave. “I'm sorry,” he started with, and tried not to look away when Dave looked visibly disgusted. He was mad. It was fair. 

“I'm sorry, Dave,” John took a deep breath and then sighed, squeezing himself around the waist. “I fucked up really badly, and I hurt you, and I ruined what we had and what we had was one of the best things that's ever happened to me and I was a stupid douchebag, I know. But I really, _really_ lik-”

“Shut up.” He hadn't yelled, and the quiet tone Dave used shocked John into silence so rapidly all he could do was blink in confusion, and watch as Dave's arms shook, his entire body trembling so hard that John wanted to scoop him up and hold him close. But that'd be bad, so bad. He watched Dave take in a deep, shaky breath, his voice coming out quiet and wavering, tense with upset, “Shut the fuck up. You think anybody believes your bullshit? You never fucking liked me. _Fuck_ -” His trembling grows and John can't help the soft sound he makes, one of pain and distress.

“If- If you liked me, you wouldn't have this stupid f-fucking journal!” He pulled it out then, the garbage notebook that had started it all, and John watched him toss it onto the ground, letting it fall open between them. “stupid crows!! stupid camera!!!” was the first thing John saw on the page, and he turned away from it. 

Dave was right, sort of. He was selfish for keeping the notebook, and thoughtless for leaving it somewhere it could be seen. “I'm sorry-”

“Save it. If that's all you've got to fucking say, I'm leaving.”

He'd started to turn away and leave, and John panicked, grabbing his arm to pull him back, before reaching for the notebook. “Dave, _please_. You said you'd let me talk.”

Dave jerked his arm free, and then crossed both of them, giving a shrug. “Fine, whatever. Talk.”

“Look,” he'd started flipping through the notebook, and Dave raised an eyebrow at him, before scoffing.

“Why the hell do I want to stare at that piece of shit? I've seen everything.”

“Uh huh, yeah. Totally. You heard everything then, right? About the bet, and the stupid assholes I sat with and how they don't think you're handsome- which is bullshit, by the way.”

Dave shifted, and John stepped closer, pushing the notebook into his hand. “Look, alright? Just look, and read, and tell me with a straight face you don't think I felt _something_ for you, because I feel a lot Dave, and those feelings are all really overwhelming and they make me do stupid thoughtless things that hurt people but I don't regret falling for you at all. Even if you still hate me.”

His little speech had Dave staring at him, those stupid aviators protecting his real expressions from John, before he turned down to the paper, thankfully deciding to go along with it. Relieved for the moment, John was quick to watch him, studying all those little quirks and twitches in his expressions he'd picked up on in their time together.

He'd written a lot on that page. Of course he remembered, what he wrote had become his mantra for the past while, the types of things he thought to himself when he saw Dave or when they kissed or when he was lying in bed, unable to sleep, but content to lie in that dream limbo imagining the person who meant so much to him. 

To be fair, it'd started mean. A cruel, “i can see all his veins, ew.” that was immediately followed with a shamefully open, “his heartbeat is calming.”

It went on. “i'd compose music about those eyes.”

He watched Dave adjust his hold on the notebook, gripping it tighter. “dave's laugh is addictive.”

“he's like a disney princess.”  
“his lips are really soft.”  
“he uses strawberry lip balm.”  
“how is he so smart?”  
“why does being with dave feel so nice?”

“is it normal to start falling in love this quickly?”

John watched Dave with adept attention as he read, and when he pulled away trembling again- a few wet spots on the notebook- John touched his arm, hesitant. Instead of pushing him away, Dave wiped his nose with his arm, before wiping that snot off on John's chest “I hate you so much, _fuck_.”

“Then, you know how sorry I am, right? Because I'm sooooooosososososo sorry Dave, more sorry than anyone,” he'd started stepping closer, until he'd enveloped Dave entirely in his arms, letting him shake and sob quietly into his chest. He'd pretend it wasn't happening, for his dignity. 

Gently, he kissed the top of Dave's head, giving him a solid squeeze that Dave returned, holding him tight. They stood like that for a solid stretch of time, John rocking them slowly, humming gently. It felt like he'd just hiked over some grand mountain, and now he was overlooking the view with the person he wanted to see it with most in his arms. Sure, Dave was trembling and crying a whole lot, but he was also holding on so tight that John couldn't help but think they'd make it through. 

When he finally pulled away, John wiped Dave's eyes with the sleeve of his hoodie, offering him a soft smile. “Does that mean you hate me enough that you can't stay away?”

“Something like that,” his voice sounded rough, and John sighed, pulling him back into a hug as his own eyes watered. He just sounded so ruined by everything, and John knew he'd run him to hell and back. He knew he owed him a whole lot as well, especially with Dave on the verge of forgiving him. 

He kissed the top of Dave's head again, nuzzling into his scalp. “Go to prom with me.”

Dave laughed, weak, tired. “Seriously?”

“Please? I know you wanted to go, and we have the suits, and you paid for the ticket. So go with me.”

“But what about your family? I thought all this bullshit was for them.”

“I mean, yeah? But it's not like going stag will make them hang out with me, they all really hate me. Besides, we can dance as a group. But there's nobody I'd rather slow dance with than you.”

He looks like he wants to say no. He also looks like he wants to say yes, and John crosses his fingers and bites his lip, putting all his focus on staying hopeful until Dave sighs and nods, reaching out to grab one of those crossed finger hands. “Yeah, fine. Alright. Ya fucking charmer. But-”

“But what. But anything. Do you want me to go butt naked? I will.”

“Jesus, shut the fuck up!” He laughs, touching John's jaw with his other hand, making John sigh and nuzzle into his palm like an overexcited cat. “I was gonna say you've gotta get me more food and punch whenever I want, got it? And you're gonna take a whole buncha sappy ass photos with me. And spend the day with me. No school.”

“You're trying to get me to skip _again_?” John gasped, and then nodded, “as if I'd go anyway. Yeah, of course I'll spend the morning with you. We can hang out and watch movies 'till we get our suits on.” It sounded perfect to John, and he hoped it sounded perfect to Dave as well. After all, he was visibly softening, but John knew it wasn't going to be magically all better. There was still tenseness in his shoulders, and when John touched him it didn't all melt away. 

There was also absolutely no way in hell Dave's family was going to be daisies and daffodils about this development, but they could just deal with it. His own family could as well. The things he felt for Dave were real and honest, and he'd fight tooth and nail to make it up to him. 

He'd do a lot of things for the stupid dork standing in front of him, head tilted up, eyes probably staring inquisitively from behind those dorky mirrored shades that hid pretty red eyes. 

“Your family's gonna freak out if you don't come home and tell them what happened,” he sighed, beginning to pull away, only for Dave to step closer.

“They're out on some group hangout date thing, wanted to give me the house to myself. So I could think.” Ah. John nodded in understanding, twirling one of Dave's fluffy curls around his finger. 

With a gentle touch, Dave did the same, reaching up to touch John's own hair, dark and thick and shiny. John hummed, slouching to give him more access. “Do you want me to walk you home? You know, so you can think.”

He expected Dave to have to sit on the question for a bit, but he immediately shook his head. “Come with me,” the confusion on John's face must've been clear, and he spoke for clarification. “I don't want to be alone right now.”

Yeah, that was fair. He'd really worn Dave out, and now he needed comfort. John was practically being blessed. 

He was being blessed. Dave was a goddamn angel. He was handsome, and pretty, and soft and kind and funny and witty and smart and creative and talented and he still wanted John around, even after everything. 

“Dave, wait. Before we go, lemme kiss you. Please?”

He didn't get a vocal answer. Instead, Dave leaned up and cupped his cheeks firmly, kissing him for three whole seconds before pulling away with a coy smile, gesturing John to follow along. “C'mon. You said you were sorry, right? Got some things I wanna talk about.”

John's lips were tingling, and he laughed breathlessly, taking Dave's hand firmly in his own. He was luckier than anyone to have met Dave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're back to regularly scheduled updates! Not that it really matters, since next chapter is the last one!   
> If you like this fic, please feel free to give kudos, comment, and maybe read my other fics? Thanks for all your support!


	12. Dave: Fall Into Place

The actual day of prom was as hectic as it was exciting, and Dave found himself buzzing with the tension of a milestone event occurring from the moment he woke up and hopped into the shower. The list of things he needed to do- and the list of things everybody around him needed to do- seemed stuffed to the brim and never ending. 

John's arrival was a welcome reprieve from the chaos, especially when he came in with two coffee's and a box of donuts. His siblings, who were still cautious of John and his intentions, managed to put aside their differences for a sugary breakfast, and Dave even saw Roxy ruffle up John's hair as she leaned over to nab a sprinkle coated donut from the box. 

“Make sure he doesn't stress himself out too much,” she muttered, just loud enough for Dave to bristle defensively and stick his tongue out at her, arms crossed. He wasn't stressed, just... Jittery. But the jam filled donut John had brought did help, and he chewed on it decisively as he looked over the list of things that had to be done before they arrived at the dance.

Rose and Roxy both had manipedis, and then hair appointments for all four of them- he was sure John's family had the same idea. Then, the girls were going on to get their makeup done professionally. John had to pick up the corsages and the limo, and then all eight of them had to meet their families at the nearby park for photographs. It was a lot for one day, especially when it was followed up by hours of eating and dancing, but it was important to all of them- especially, as he'd come to learn, John.

At first, he hadn't understood. Everything that had happened, all the good and all the bad of meeting and getting involved with John- it'd all been because of prom. It seemed fucked up to him, it was just an overpriced dance at the end of the day, like a wedding but with less alcohol and more uncomfortably underdressed teacher chaperones walking around. But as he talked about it with him- and they talked about it a _lot_ as John did his best to repair the damage he'd done- it'd made more sense. He was obsessed with what prom represented more than anything, the milestone achievement that it was and the celebration of what he'd managed. He'd been afraid of losing his family more than anything. 

It really didn't help that John had admitted to his nerves about leaving, a fact which Dave had learned and then managed to completely ignore. It'd just seemed so distant, but now that he was watching John toy with the hanger his suit was on, Dave realised it'd never been closer. In barely three months- closer to two, with moving time- John would be gone for California, and Dave would be stuck in Seattle, hours apart. It made their relationship seem temporary, especially beside the ones they had with family. 

He could see where it'd added up to what he'd done. He supposed John's rebellious choice in friends didn't help, and as much as Dave still wholly blamed him for his choices, at least he could see why, and in seeing why he felt a lot more confident in his relationship- and in himself. John was a stupid douchebag, but at the end of the day he was _his_ stupid douchebag, and that was what mattered. 

Dave was stirred out of his thoughts by John touching his arm and standing, leaning over to press a kiss to his lips. He smiled, letting their noses bump, before John pulled away to stand. “Dave, I've gotta go help my Dad, he's got an issue with the camera and I'm gonna go try and fix it. I'll text you if I need help with it, since you're the camera dude and all, but I'll see you when I get the limo, alright?”

“You fucking asshole, leaving me all by my lonesome,” he frowned when all he got was a sympathetic look and another kiss.

“Just go hang out with Dirk! He's probably all alone too.”

“Yeah, but that fucker _wants_ to be alone. Didn't Roxy tell you to take care of me? Here you go, just up and abandoning me in my time of need. Gonna have to call the boyfriend police, report a real criminal on the run abandoning his boyfriend in his time of need- have them chasing after you in their dorky car and shit."

“I'll deal with her wrath, but you know she'd forgive me if I said it was because I had to help her girlfriend's technologically impaired father! Besides, I know if that camera doesn't work you're not going to shut up about how many awesome photo ops we missed, and I'm not letting you carry around your camera to prom 'cause you'll spend all night taking photos and cooing over it instead of actually, you know, doing prom stuff!”

He had enough of a point that Dave really couldn't do much more than shrug, standing, “you don't know that. Maybe this year's prom theme is secretly gonna be 'art and artists,' and you're gonna feel real bad that you didn't go ahead and let me bring my camera to take some sick ass photos of all of us on the limo-”

“You can borrow Dad's camera for that!”

“-no fuck you it's not the same, that basic ass Canon bullshit takes some pretty photos if you're looking for shit for the family photo album, not _art_ -”

“It _is_ for the family photo album, you pretentious dweeb!”

“Yeah well it should damn well be art too Egbert, you know as well as I do that my face is a fuckin' masterpiece and only deserves the best technology to witness it.”

John snorted out a laugh, pulling Dave in to kiss his forehead and beam at him, “you're right, you are a masterpiece. So go take some selfies, alright? Text them to me, I'll be back before you know it,” another kiss and he pulled away, waving. “Bye Dave!”

After he left, Dave found himself sitting on the couch again, eating another donut because fuck saving room for dinner, listening to the sounds of metal clanging from the garage. Then the sound halted, and Dirk emerged, black splotches on his face and curly hair pointing every fucking way. He took a donut, and sat himself down on the couch beside Dave. “Boyfriend left?”

“Yeah, his Dad's got some camera issues or something, then I guess he's got his hair and stuff. He needs it, you ever seen his hair? S'like he got trapped on one of those static balls for the first two years of his life and his hair ain't never learned to come back down.”

“Jake isn't much better, but I found a twig in his hair once when we were cuddling. Asshole showered and everything, and bam, there it was, fucking stick. I swear it's like I'm dating the forest.”

Dave snorted, “Rose would have it worse then, yeah?”

“You kidding me? Jade brushes her hair.”

He laughed again, staring up at the ceiling. “You and Jake are staying together after graduation, right? Nothing tearing you two apart, probably got a bottle of superglue stuck between you if we really pry at it.”

“Mmhmm. He's gonna go backpacking through the Rockies this summer, but he got some sick ass job working here after, so he isn't leaving.” Dave hummed, bringing his knees to his chest.

“And, uh... Roxy?” She was leaving the same way John was- heading off to MIT of all places with a damn good scholarship to back her up. Staying with that much money being offered really wasn't an option. 

Dirk must've known what he was getting at, and he sat up straighter, placing a hand on Dave's shoulder. “You know it's gonna be fine. You two both wanna stay together, yeah? Those four- they're freakishly loyal. Besides, if shit goes bad I'll hack his balls off with a sword.”

“And _they're_ freakishly loyal?” Dave snorted, but he did feel a bit better. Dirk was right, after everything that had happened, if John was going to toss in the towel he would've already. He'd put in too much work just to make things better, and throwing it all away would be fucking stupid.

After that, it was quiet- until Dirk went to wash his face- and then the two of them left to continue the hectic pace of readying themselves. They met their sisters and had their hair done, soft curls teased into gorgeous stylings. At least, for his sisters. Dave's own hair was merely trimmed and styled, but whenever he glanced at Rose he caught sight of interwoven lace, and he was pretty sure there was some pink going on over with Roxy. 

They managed to escape before Dave could get a good look, slippery fuckers. (He wished he had his camera, seeing his sisters this happy made his heart hurt in the best way.)

Then John and Jake, in a _fucking black limo_ , pulled into the parking lot of the hair salon and sent him and Dirk whizzing away into the night. Or, the driver did, while Jake busied himself with explaining what each individual flower in his corsage meant- an explanation that had Dirk turning a bright shade of pink- and John sat close, fiddling with the red boutineer in his hand. “It, uh... It's a red carnation. It means, uh. Love.”

He was actually, genuinely and very visibly embarrassed with how sappy he was being, but Dave couldn't help snorting at him, leaning in for a soft kiss. “Red flowers pretty much always mean love, dumbass. You ever seen stores during Valentine's day? Looks like a fucking crimson explosion in there.”

“Yeah, well, maybe I was trying to be romantic!” He stuck his tongue out, and then smiled. “You'll let me put it on when we get home, right?”

“Only if I can put yours on too. Did you even look at it?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah! I didn't know what it was.”

“It's an orchid, asshole,” he rested his head on John's shoulder, smiling to himself, “got the bluest one they'd give me.”

“...Does it mean something?”

“Nah, just thought it looked good. Almost as blue as your eyes, y'know? Pretty fuckin' close, at least. Made me think of you, so I got it.”

John was silent for a long moment, and then he turned, pressing his face into Dave's shoulder to make a soft, almost pained sound. “Daaaave, you dickbag! That's way more romantic than 'this flower means I like your dumb butt!' Fuck you!”

He smiled big and wide right at Dirk, who gave him a look of disdain he could decipher easily even with those stupid Kamina shades. 

“I thought it was pretty sweet,” he finally muttered, kissing the top of John's head. “You're pretty sweet. Best date I could've asked for.”

John didn't reply, but he felt the telltale press of lips to his neck, and then a firm nuzzling that ended with John pressed against his side, cuddling him for the rest of the ride back to his house. 

From there, the actual countdown to prom was starting to tick. He was sure the girls were getting dressed at the same place they were having their makeup done, but with no incentive to do makeup themselves, the other half of the group just put their suits on and let themselves be taken to where photographs were, twiddling their thumbs.

Their arrival was worth it though, and Dave leaned onto John as he watched them step out, one by one. They were always pretty, but something about their outfits, sleek and shimmering and gorgeously formal, it made them look like royalty. He was stunned, only shocked out of it when Roxy scooped him into a hug, lifting him right off the ground. “Dave! You look so good! My little baby's all grown up!”

He pushed her away, laughing and admiring her up close. She was sparkling, literally painted with glitter that shimmered whenever she moved even an inch. “We're twins, you asshole.”

“And you're the baby twin,” she reminded him with a quirk of the lips, only to pull away and busy herself with Dirk as well.

Rose and Jade came up to him as well, perfectly juxtaposed and gorgeously elegant. He finally saw how the lace was creating some sort of tiara for Rose to go with her deep purples, while Jade had flowers in her own hair and a flowing, forest green gown. 

It was all followed up with John's Dad setting up the camera, posing them all in group shots and couple shots and single shots until Dave was itching to leave, tired of being in front of the camera instead of behind it, even with all the romantic photographs he knew he was going to get.

Then, finally, they were all off. Arm in arm, the eight of them stuffed into the limo and let themselves be driven away, chattering excitedly. The longer they drove the closer prom was, and the closer prom was the more the reality of a night of good food and dancing became. 

The convention centre was buzzing with students when they arrived, suits and gowns visible from every angle, and the sounds of compliments and camera shutters filling the air. John's hand was warm where it held onto Dave, thumb gently rubbing his palm as Dave's eyes wandered, taking in all the high ceilings and large panels of glass bathing the room in the evening glow of sunlight lingering on, promises of long summer days ahead keeping it up.

Inside, they were sat at a round table, all eight of them together, and it was damn nice. He was pretty fucking pleased, looking around the table at his family- one that had extended rapidly- and Dave was proud to say there wasn't really anybody else he'd rather sit with. 

Dinner was a massive affair. At least, the plates of food were massive. His own was stuffed with food, more than he'd normally eat in a day, and then he'd glance at Jade or John and see the towering pile of carbs and meat they'd given themselves, which they wolfed right down without complaint. They managed to do the same thing at dessert, leaving Dave with a stomach ache just looking at them. 

Finally, with their stomachs full and the photographs all taken, the dancing began- all of them dancing together with varying levels of success. Roxy was damn good at dancing, and he could see her guiding Jane into it. Jade was having the time of her goddamn life, excessive limbs going every fucking way like a shitty giant squid trying to knock a building over but being too damn fucking bad at coordination to manage. Rose, safely out of range of her arms, danced more cautiously. Dirk and Jake were... Fucking awful. There wasn't a way to explain it, except that watching them made him think his cellphone was going to ring and someone was going to tell him he had seven days to live, like they were the fucking video tape in The Ring and later, Dirk's booty shaking was going to murder him in his sleep. 

He looked away, turning instead to John, who's hand was holding his waist and pulling him closer almost possessively, leaving no space between them. It felt risque even being this close, and Dave peeked around to see if any teachers would come put distance between them, only to have one actually, literally smile at him. He smiled back politely, and let his own hands go to John's hips. 

They danced through song after song, getting almost uncomfortably hot under the lights and in the crowd of students all moving together, their suits not at all aiding them. Neither of them moved away though, and instead they seemed to get even closer, until their chests were flush and John was laughing, their height difference making it difficult to look at each other. 

Suddenly, lips were at his ear, John's voice managing to get to him over the thumping music. “Lets go outside Dave.”

The balcony was less populated, but there was still mingling, people holding cups of soda and fruit kebobs as they talked, leaning in close for their private conversations. John led him to the railing, and leaned over, admiring the city and the way the sun was completely fading, leaving the glow of apartment lights to take over, like someone pulled the stars from the sky and slapped them on the nearest vertical slab of concrete. 

“Wish I had my camera,” Dave sighed, turning to pout at John. “Why'd you make me leave it behind?”

“Because you'd be too busy taking photos to dance with me, and I'd get jealous. Duh,” a hand settled on his hip, and Dave hummed, a smile on his face despite himself. “Yeah, alright charmer.” He leaned in for a kiss, hand holding John's face still as he did. “Any reason you took me out here, or did you just wanna canoodle?”

“Well, uh... I actually have something for you!”

Dave took a step back, as if staring at John's face from further away would make that statement less baffling. Then he frowned, rubbing the back of his neck, “shit. Should've told me we were getting gifts, I would've done something.”

“What? No, nonono, this isn't a gift for an occasion! It's, you know. Sort of an apology gift.” He looked like he was visibly biting his tongue, even as he reached back to- presumably- grab the gift. 

“...And?”

“And, uh... A promise?”

He pulled out a velvet box then, and Dave couldn't help wondering how long he'd been sitting on it. Then, all thoughts of ass warmed presents fell out of the room when John shoved it into Dave's hands and let him open it. 

Inside was a small, silver ring forming an infinity. It was simple, sleek, and so fucking sappy he felt his heart clench, looking between the ring and John's nervous, patient face. 

“Fuck- John, fuck, how'd you pay for this?” He definitely felt his eyes welling up with tears, and Dave dabbed at them, a wobbly smile on his face. Even if he was concerned about having that much money spent on him, it was touching as hell, and he could feel his entire body reacting to it.

John must have really wanted him to ask that question though, because he just smiled even more, speaking as he put the ring onto Dave's right hand. “Well, you remember the bet?” He didn't wait for an answer- neither of them could forget it. “So, Jade was _really_ mad at me, but then I told her that you sort of forgave me? And we were going to try again? And I told her that, you know, the agreement was if you were into me by the time prom rolled around they'd owe me money, so I took Jade with me to go collect,” he laughed, brushing a curl from Dave's face, “I think if I let her go without me, there might have been a few casualties, but she sort of scared them into submission! And I don't think anybody's gonna be talking about you anymore.”

It was touching, and stupid, and _ridiculous_ , just like John. Dave sniffled, shaking his head, “I'm graduating, dumbass! They can't talk about me anyway!”

“Well? It's the principal of it! So, uh... Do you like the ring?”

He glanced down at it again, wiggling his finger so the metal shone, and then he nodded. “Yeah. I love it.”

“And... You know it isn't a proposal, right? I mean, we're a bit young! It's just, you know, a promise ring. Like,” Dave let John take his hand, kissing the back of it, “I promise that I won't cheat on you or do anything stupid in California, and I promise I'll come home and kiss you every break, and I promise I'll read all the texts you send me even if you send them at one am, and I promise I'll miss you a lot Dave, 'cause you mean more to me than I ever thought someone that wasn't my family could.”

Thoroughly wooed, Dave kissed him hard through his tears, the metal on his finger present in his mind, a textural reminder of everything in this moment, and of John, stupid dorky try hard John, who'd managed to crack him right open like it was nothing.

“You're such a fucking sap,” he muttered, their noses touching, “you know I'm gonna get my ass down to California sometime and hang out with you, let you show me around town, take me to the good restaurants you find. 'Cause you're super goddamn stuck now, look at that, Beyonce's gonna be real proud, she'll just be sitting there with her little girl pleased as goddamn punch that you put a ring on it.”

“Dave! I said it wasn't a proposal!” He laughed, pressing kisses to Dave's jaw.

“Shut up, it is too. It's a goddamn promise proposal, and ain't that just the best kind? Makes up for the mediocre promposal I got.”

“...I thought you liked it.”

“It isn't a fucking cake, lemme tell ya that. C'mon John, you had to step up your game and you goddamn delivered,” he couldn't stop glancing at the ring, watching it move in the light. 

John kissed his forehead, staring at his hand as well, and then he pulled him away with a grin and a wiggle of his eyebrows, “we should go dance some more.”

Whether because they were observant or because they knew it was coming, his siblings cooed over the ring and gave him proud, happy looks, while John danced with him right through the fast songs into a slow one that had them swaying together. Dave's eyes closed, and he just took it all in, John's breath and warmth and startlingly present heartbeat thumping even in his hands. 

He was pretty sure he understood what John had meant when he'd asked himself if it was normal to fall in love that fast. It was already hard to imagine a world where he didn't have John at his side, and he could confidently say that John was his best friend and boyfriend without worry. It'd taken a damn effort and a half to get where they were, but his heart had decided it was worth it to stick around months ago, and he couldn't find it in himself to disagree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end of it! Thank you so much to everyone who read this, regardless of if you've been reading from chapter one or just started today and read it all in one go. It's your support that helped push me on.
> 
> I also want to thank [Harvey](http://harveychan.tumblr.com/) and [Dzu!](http://dzueni.tumblr.com/) Without their support I wouldn't have gotten this far, and they both drew awesome fanart of this fic for me with nothing in return but my love. But they mean a lot to me, and they both run fantastic blogs- check them out!
> 
> As for the future- I've got one (maybe two) fics left that I want to do in this universe, just standalone one-shots that are better with previous knowledge of the fic but don't require it. After that, I've got some plans for other Homestuck fics, so please feel free to subscribe to me as a user or [follow my writing blog](http://exorciststuck.tumblr.com/) for updates so you don't miss anything!
> 
> If you liked this, please kudos and comment! Thank you!

**Author's Note:**

> If you like this story, please remember to leave kudos and comments! I'd love to know what you think.
> 
> Check out the kids appearances [here!](http://harveychan.tumblr.com/post/143455145164/kid-appearances-for-falling-into-place-by)


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